,/%, 



^ 






& 



6> 



•7 ^ 













o V 
*0 ^ 



^ 



* • » . ^ • 










^ 



** 



WV **•* 



"/ 



v* 






°* 












^°** 









V 



T* A 



,** • •' 



%. «.*" 






" 



J 



.r 



-£-_ 



* 







o 
o 










*b 










>° 


^ 




^r 






."&■ 



%> 













^°- >°*+ ^ ~&M&* ? 




V t ** .V 



KEEPING THE SEAS 




THE AUTHOR. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



BY 

CAPTAIN E. R. G. R. EVANS, 

C.B., D.S.O., R.N. 




°iX*&x/£:3> 



NEW YORK 
FREDERICK WARNE & CO. 



K 



37 s"*/ 
.Met 



Copyright, 1920, by 
FREDERICK WARNE & CO. 



JAN 31 1320 



©CI.A559 80 



DEDICATED 

BY GRACIOUS PERMISSION TO 

HIS MAJESTY THE KING OF THE BELGIANS 



CONTENTS 



Foreword 
I Commencing with Dover and the 

Sixth Flotilla 13 

II The Belgian Coast in 1 9 14 . . 21 

III The Winter of 1914-15 ... 30 

IV The Auxiliary Patrol ... 44 
V Flag Changes and Some More 

Belgian Coast Work ... 49 
VI Bombardments and a Few Diver- 
sions 58 

VII Escort Work, a Second Winter 

and a Bit of Salvage ... 74 
VIII " Fred Karno's " Navy and the 

Belgian Barrage .... 88 
IX A Third Winter and H.M.S. 

Broke 1 1 1 

X A Busman's Holiday .... 143 
XI "Bikky" and the Big Guns . . 161 
XII The R.N.A.S., More Coast Watch- 
ing, Mine-Laying and Skir- 
mishing 175 

XIII Knuts and Gold 199 

XIV Dover Mine-Sweepers . . . . 212 
XV A Little Bit of Shore Time and 

More Flag Changes . . . 218 

The Lobster that Kicked . . 223 

XVI H.M.S. Active 244 

XVII A Brazilian Coast Patrol . . 273 

XVIII A Portuguese Sea Patrol . . . 298 

XIX Belgium, 19 19 305 

Index 319 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



FACING 
PAGE 



The Author Frontispiece 

King Albert — the hero Monarch. (Photographed 
by Speaight, Ltd., on the battlefield of 

Flanders during the war) 23 

H. M. S. Broke making a smoke screen to protect 

Monitors bombarding Belgian Coast . . 40 
Captain Taussig and the Officers of U.S.S. Wads- 
worth . 56 

Twelve-inch guns mounted in imitation barn near 

Adinkerque, by Commander Bickford . . 72 
The Heroine — Queen of the Belgians . . .88 
The King and Queen of the Belgians with the Earl 
of Athlone and Admiral Bacon on board one 

of the Dover Destroyers 104 

American Staff Officers, with Commander Evans on 
board M.L.181 going out to meet the first 6 
U. S. destroyers off Queenstown . . .120 
The German Submarine Shelters at Bruges . .136 
Guns ready for landing from Monitor General 

Cranford 152 

German Battery "Tirpitz" built in 191 5 . . . 168 

A "Tirpitz" 11 inch gun 184 

The Tripod secured for passage — ready to place 
on. shallow sand bank to spot for bombarding 
Monitors on Belgian Coast .... 200 

Crusader throwing it about a bit 216 

Lieut. Pullen, R.N.V.R 232 

A group of Local "Knuts" photographed by 
Queen Elisabeth on board Lord Clive in Dun- 
kirk 248 



FOREWORD 

Naval officers have not generally been encouraged to 
write popular accounts of their experiences and adven- 
tures, and I have steadfastly refused to be " drawn " 
up to date; but quite recently officers of high rank have 
published books and memoirs that have quite an 
apologetic strain about them. What on earth the 
British Navy has to apologise for, I have yet to discover, 
and why the achievements of a magnificent soldier like 
Kitchener should be pulled to pieces now, I cannot 
imagine. However, there it is, and in placing my 
volume on the market I make no apology whatever. I 
have stories to tell which will throw light on the work 
of the satellites, whose tiny vessels patrolled the seas 
for four and a half years, not even weary years, mark 
you, because we in the little craft were too enthusiastic 
over the Allied cause and, incidentally, too proud of 
our Naval services to let anybody down. 

Enthusiasm and self-confidence make for success in 
war, and it is of the sea enthusiasts that I write. The 
book cannnot please everybody, but it should please 
the majority, and its intention is to bring into the 
picture some of those whose names are unknown to 
the general public, but who, nevertheless, displayed a 
courage, ability and heroism almost unsurpassed in the 
history of the war. 

Nor is the book written for those who believe too 
strongly in the proverb, " They also serve who stand 
and wait." it is rather for those whose motto is " Go 
in and win." 



CHAPTER I 

Commencing with Dover and the Sixth Flotilla 

At the commencement of hostilities against Germany, 
The Patrol Flotilla, attached to Dover Strait, consisted 
of twelve very fast destroyers classed as the Tribals, 
and in addition to these we had a dozen or so of small, 
obsolete torpedo-boat destroyers. 

Although navally known as " thirty-knotters," these 
little vessels were virtually incapable of exceeding 
twenty-five knots at full speed. Some of them were 
built as far back as 1896, and in 1914 they were in 
various stages of decay. They had seen better days, 
these poor shabby little old-fashioned torpedo craft. 
Their captains and officers were proud of them never- 
theless; their crews were happy and their sub-lieutenants, 
boys of twenty who were paid as their first and executive 
officers, spent hours in hiding the dented and patched 
disfigurements of age by a liberal use of black paint and 
a delicate addition of " pretty-pretties," such as polished 
brass wind-vanes on the mastheads and little badges fixed 
on the tiny dinghies which were carried by these'craft. 
The big-handed sailor men were proud of their floating 
homes, and they willingly put up with the most dreadful 
accommodation in the dark, ill-ventilated hole, officially 

13 



i 4 KEEPING THE SEAS 

named the mess-deck, for the greater freedom from big- 
ship discipline, and the considerable increase to their 
scanty pay. 

At the end of July, 19 14, I had the honour of com- 
manding the Mohawk, one of the Tribals, and as the 
senior officer, I brought twelve fast destroyers to 
Dover, to join up with the thirty-knotters and, with 
them, to take over the patrol of Dover Strait and its 
approaches. 

The officer who had charge of the Dover destroyers 
was Captain C. D. Johnson, R.N., of H.M.S. Attentive, 
and his naval title was Captain (D) Sixth Flotilla. 

It may be explained that each destroyer flotilla has 
a captain in charge, and this officer is responsible for 
the discipline, organisation and conduct of the flotilla 
under his charge. The Captain (D) is in fact a mini- 
ature admiral, his flotilla a miniature fleet, and the of- 
ficers commanding the destroyers in the flotilla are a 
certain number of commanders, each with his own di- 
vision of four boats, while the remainder of the destroyer 
skippers are lieutenants or lieutenant-commanders. They 
are mostly very young men, frequently of independent 
opinion and generally full of initiative. A destroyer 
captain is a little tin god in his way, who should (and 
usually does) command the respect and affection of 
those in his little command. 

Four light cruisers were attached to the Dover Patrol, 
under the orders of Captain Johnson ; none of them very 
new, but whatever designs the Germans had on Dover 
or the adjacent coasts of France, it is safe to say that 
the officers and men of the Sixth Flotilla and the at- 
tached cruisers were eager and anxious to go in against 
the enemy and win. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 15 

I well remember the howl of joy that went up from 
the destroyers when the yeoman of each little vessel 
strode firmly aft, with grim smile, and handed to his 
commanding officer the signal — " Commence hostilities 
against Germany." 

During the critical period that preceded the fatal 
day, we destroyer captains were called on board, en 
masse, to hear our leaders' plans, and to gather what our 
duties would be. The plans were clear enough. The 
patrols were all decided and arranged for us, and shortly 
after the receipt of that signal, never to be forgotten, the 
black hulls of a score of destroyers were to be seen 
gliding out of the entrances of Dover harbour. 

It was, of course, summer time, and the weather fine, 
clear and warm. 

In the opinion of the majority, we had little chance 
of submarine encounters; the enemy had not so many 
U boats to spare in 19 14, and I think we expected the 
Hun to aim for something better, and to play for higher 
stakes than the somewhat faded vessels of the obsolete 
Sixth Flotilla. I may say here that I am not included 
in the ranks of the " Lets-all-be-gloomy Brigade," and 
whatever other people may say, I think the Admiralty 
of 19 14 deserve a pat on the back for their selection of 
the vessels in the Sixth Flotilla, when our war plans 
were worked out. 

To start with, the Germans did not know everything. 
They did not know what submarines were ready to rip 
open the steel hulls of their attacking ships that might 
come our way by day. By night they would gain 
nothing by sending good ships through, which was 
practically asking for a destroyer attack under conditions 
most favourable to the destroyer. 



i6 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



Before the Belgian coast ports were occupied, an 
enemy destroyer attack on Dover Straits was improbable 
during daylight hours, when the Harwich Force could, 
and would, have cut off their retreat. So what we 
really had to face was not very much until the days grew 
shorter and the hours of darkness lent themselves to more 
advantageous attacking conditions. Even then, as the 
year 19 14 drew to a close, it was none too likely that we 
should get a night destroyer raid, for the enemy had no 
very great inducement in sending modern destroyers 
to fight ships which, even if inferior in armament, 
were not inferior in speed, and not likely to be manned 
by gentlemen with cold feet. As we have seen in this 
war, night destroyer fights are not decided by numbers 
and armaments, so much as by luck and dash. 

The Tribal class burnt oil fuel, their speeds in 19 14 
were very high, and their sea-keeping qualities magni- 
ficent, as far as weather was concerned. Their dis- 
advantages were in armament, especially in torpedoes, 
and in their high fuel consumption, which limited their 
radius of action compared to the destroyers of the now 
celebrated " L " class, and those of post-war pattern. 

The following is a list of the Tribals, for those who 
care for a more detailed explanation: — 



Name. 


Original Speed. 


Armament Date 


of Launch 


Afridi 


. 32.75 knots 


5 12-pounders and 


1907 


Cossack 


. 33.15 " 


2 torpedo tubes 


1907 


Ghurka 


. 34 


" 


1907 


Mo/iaivk 


. 34.51 " 


)> 


1907 


Tartar 


. 35.67 " 


» 


1907 


Saracen 


. 33.8 " 


2 4-inch and 


1908 


Amazon 


. 33.73 " 


2 torpedo tubes 


1908 


Crusader . . 


. 35 


» 


1909 


Maori 


. 33 


» 


1909 


Nubian 


. 34.88 " 


>> 


1909 


Viking 


. 34.88 " 


>> 


1909 


Zulu 


. 34 


>> 


1909 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



17 



And now let us turn to the thirty-knotters. 
noticed they were decidedly old-fashioned :- 



It will be 



Name. 


Original 


Speed. 


Armament. 


Date of Launch 


Crane 


. . 30.3 


knots 






1896 


Faiun 


. . 30.5 


" 






1897 


Flirt 


.. 30 


" 






1897 


Gipsy 


.. 30 


>» 






1897 


Leven 


.. 30 


>> 


1 12-pounder 




1898 


Mermaid 


.. 30 


)» 


5 6-pounders 




1898 


Falcon 


.. 30 


jj 


2 torpedo tubes 


1899 


Greyhound . . 


.. 30 


" 






1900 


Kangaroo 


.. 30 


tf 






1900 


Myrmidon . . 


.. 30 


»> 






1900 


Racehorse . . 


.. 30 


ii 






1900 


Syren 


.. 30 


J 






1900 



The Sixth Flotilla maintained their patrol nearly 
across the Straits. French destroyers and small torpedo- 
boats kept watch on their own side. For some few 
months our Allies laboured with us at the somewhat 
uninteresting work of intercepting all vessels attempting 
to pass the Straits of Dover and diverting them through 
the Downs to be examined by men who knew; these 
men were a collection of officers with merchant service 
experience, who pretty shrewdly sized up fool and rogue, 
and who made it their business to separate the sheep 
from the goats. This intercepting work kept one con- 
stantly on the bridge ; by night we had great trouble 
with vessels who tried hard to evade the examination 
service and some of them were very clever; perhaps 
some of them got through ! Very early in the war the 
Zulu seized and took to Dover as a prize, a beautiful 
German sailing vessel. Her captain spoke English well, 
and knew nothing whatever of the war. He cheerily 
invited the Zulu's skipper on board and asked him down 
to drink " A long glass be-e-er." Poor man ! He burst 
into tears when the news was broken that the Zulu had 
2 



1 8 KEEPING THE SEAS 

captured him — at least he has the distinction now of 
being one of the few living Germans who escaped some 
of the horrors of war. 

By day our patrol duties were lighter; we got three 
days in harbour out of four, and three nights at sea out 
of four. It was not necesary to patrol so closely during 
the day time, for one could hold the Straits with five 
destroyers, whereas at night we thickened up the patrol 
line to stop anything passing through. 

My own experience was that Dutch and Swedish 
vessels ignored our signals and the Admiralty's instruc- 
tions most; but what we couldn't always get' into them 
by politeness we sometimes succeeded in doing by means 
of a blank charge, or a shot across their bows. Some, I 
fear, even descended to familiarities through the mega- 
phone, such as " Van Tromp, old dear, you'll never see 
Rotterdam, Schiedam or Amsterdam again unless you 
take your dam ship through the Downs." 

I caught up one large Dutch liner, the Tubantia, and 
made her anchor off Folkestone. She had some Ger- 
mans on board, but we received orders at that time not 
to arrest Germans travelling on neutral ships Later on 
in the war the Germans torpedoed and sank her them- 
selves. 

On another occasion, shortly after Austria was de- 
clared our enemy, I caught an Austrian steamer, a splen- 
did vessel, passing to the East of the Goodwins by the 
forbidden route. She stopped as directed and an officer 
boarded her, alas! to find that she had a " Days of 
Grace " permit allowing her to proceed unmolested to 
Austria. I was disappointed for she would have been 
a splendid prize. 

The patrolling was a pleasure to begin with, albeit a 



KEEPING THE SEAS 19 

somewhat strenuous pleasure, but we began to grow 
envious and restless when the news of the prowess of the 
" L " boats reached us. Four " L " boats were with 
the light cruiser Amphion when the German minelayer 
Kbnigin Luise was sunk, on the 5th August, 19 14, and 
these same boats rescued the crew of the Amphion the 
following day, when she struck one of the mines laid by 
her victim and was sunk herself in consequence. 

It was on August 28th, less than a month after war 
was declared, that the " L " boats got their chance off 
Heligoland. The account of this now famous fight made 
us yearn for close action and, to my knowledge, certain 
of the destroyer captains applied for transfer to the 
destroyer forces working under the Commodore (T) at 
Harwich. The Zulu's captain became flag-lieutenant to 
Commodore Tyrwhitt of the Harwich striking force; 
but some of those who left Dover eventually regretted it. 

However, the patrolling soon changed for the better. 
The Royal Naval Division, was sent to Antwerp, and it 
fell to the Sixth Flotilla destroyers to escort the huge 
transports that conveyed the troops to Ostend and 
Zeebrugge. Stealthily we moved away from Dover 
under cover of darkness; the large liners were never 
subjected to the risk of submarine attack between Dover 
and the ports of disembarkation. The transfer of the 
Naval Division was made in the early autumn nights 
when no moonlight could give away their movements. 
In the grey dawn, the steamers were berthed at Zee- 
brugge or Ostend and we, in our destroyers, watched 
them glide into these harbours, and hungrily gazed after 
those who crowded the vessels, wishing to be with them, 
wondering when they would meet the foe and hoping 
they would bring honour to the White Ensign. Perhaps 

1 



20 KEEPING THE SEAS 

I was more envious than others for my friend, Com- 
mander Victor Campbell, was adjutant of the Drake 
Battalion, and I knew he would make good. Campbell 
had been first lieutenant of Captain Scott's famous ex- 
ploring ship Terra Nova, when I had the honour of 
commanding her, but of Victor Campbell more anon. 



CHAPTER II 

The Belgian Coast in 19 14 

In late September, not so very long after the Heligo- 
land Battle, Rear-Admiral, The Hon. Horace Hood, 
C.B., M.V.O., D.S.O., was appointed to command the 
Dover Patrol, and with his fighting instincts he could 
not keep his motley squadron away from the Belgian 
coast. It fell to Admiral Hood to arrange the pre- 
liminary work of the coastal bombardments. Flying his 
flag in the destroyer Amazon (Commander Harry 
Oliphant), Hood led the destroyers close into Ostend 
Roads, shelled the right wing of the advancing German 
Army, and, one bright Sunday morning, to the surprise 
and annoyance of my fellow explorer, Sven Hedin, 
the destroyers, with incredible audacity, came close to 
the shore and one of their shells blew away the dejeuner 
and killed the guest of the aforesaid Swedish gentleman. 
Dr. Sven Hedin (who is an Honorary Knight Com- 
mander of the Royal Victorian Order) , was one of those 
delightful neutrals who " backed the wrong horse." He 
not only sympathised with Germany, but actively 
assisted the Hun by his journalistic efforts and general 
propaganda work. At the present moment, 10th April, 
19 1 9, I am sitting in the Hotel de Londres at Ostend, 
and, as I glance out of the window, I see everywhere 
signs of the " Gentle German," which Sven Hedin so 
inaccurately describes. All the ironwork of the balconies 

21 



22 KEEPING THE SEAS 

has been broken off, lamp-posts are torn away, cranes 
have been wrecked, dredgers sunk and so forth. In the 
houses, chandeliers have been pulled down and stolen, 
marble staircases wrecked, houses mutilated, drains cut, 
water supplies ruined and the " mark of the beast " is 
everywhere. I find that Sir Sven Hedin (K.C.V.O.) 
does not contrast favourably with the clear blue-eyed 
Norseman, Amundsen, that intrepid explorer who 
showed his contempt for the " Gentle German " by 
handing back all his Hun decorations as a protest against 
the thousands of murders of neutral seamen by those 
sailing under the German Naval Ensign. 

I think I am correct in quoting a highly-placed Nor- 
wegian official, who informed me that not one Norwegi- 
an life was lost through the action of the Allied Navies. 

The Belgian coast bombardments commenced seri- 
ously in October, 19 14, when Admiral Hood shelled the 
enemy in accordance with the wishes of the Belgian and 
British Headquarters Staff. The vessels we had to be- 
gin with cut a sorry figure when compared to the monit- 
ors of 19 1 8. The bombarding flotilla consisted of the 
antiquated gunboats which had been used for training 
seamen in peace time by the Gunnery Schools at Ports- 
mouth, Plymouth and Sheerness. We had some capital 
little monitors of 1,260 tons displacement and about 
twelve knots speed, which mounted then a pair of 
6-inch guns in a turret forward, and a 4.7 gun aft. 

These vessels, the Humber, Mersey and Severn, were 
built by Armstrong's, to the order of a foreign Gov- 
ernment, but never delivered. They did excellent work, 
and their shallow draught, which required only a 
fathom of water to manoeuvre in, rendered them emi- 
nently suitable for the operations in progress. In 



(Photographed by Speaight, Ltd.) 

KING ALBERT. 
The Hero Monarch, on the Battlefield of Flanders During the War. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 23 

1 9 14, well-organised as the German Army undoubtedly 
was, the enemy shore artillery made a sorry display 
against a moving target, although the speed of the bom- 
barding vessels was " nothing to write home about." 

The most absurd feature of these early sea bombard- 
ments was the introduction of the two " Flat Iron " 
gunboats, Excellent and Bustard. They were the abso- 
lute limit! Phew ! . . . Smaller than the Thames penny 
steamboats, slower than the Philadelphia snails, they 
literally crawled about like tortoises; getting into posi- 
tion, firing, one of them a 9.2-inch gun and the other a 
6-inch breech loader, drifting off their marks in the tide- 
way and then laboriously groping back and " loosing 
off " once more. It was extremely comic! but we had 
nothing else to spare. 

Forgive me if I depart from the spirit of the critics; 
everybody slangs Winston, but he sent us these ships, 
which were exquisitely described as of no naval value. 
They were unfit for ordinary sea fighting, but I laughed 
into my early morning tea and spluttered crumbs from 
the bread and butter with which I fortified my empty 
stomach, whilst I watched these quaint sea practices. 
It was good to be alive. The Germans fired a lot of stuff 
back at us, but did very little damage. A shell makes 
a pretty splash in the sea, and these coastal operations — 
for most of us our baptism of fire — did us a lot of good. 

During the time that Admiral Hood directed opera- 
tions from the Amazon, a signalman had been stationed 
at the end of Nieuport Pier for the purpose of passing 
signals from the Army to the Admiral, and vice versa. 
The flag lieutenant who accompanied the Admiral was 
Bill Adams or, to give him his navy list title, Lieutenant 
Jamieson B. Adams, R.N.R. Adams was an old Ant- 



24 KEEPING THE SEAS 

arctic explorer, having been second in command to Sir 
Ernest Shackleton on the famous expedition of 1907, 
when he accompanied his leader to a point within 
100 miles of the South Pole itself. He had a charming 
and humourous personality, was a regular handy man 
and, as the Norsemen say, " had an eye on every 
finger." 

The destroyers were being fired at fairly heavily, 
and Adams was much put to it with hts small signal staff 
to keep things going. However, he managed to keep an 
eye on the connecting link, who was continually flashing 
out signals from the pier head, and when Adams ob- 
served that the pier head was coming into the zone of 
the enemy shell fire, he told the Amazon signal staff to 
order the man off the pier. In vain they signalled to 
this effect, the signalman stuck to his pier-head, flashing 
to seaward, semaphoring to shoreward, oblivious of the 
dangers which were besetting him, but jumping round 
like a monkey in a red hot cage. Adams through his 
telescope saw that whole sections of the pier were be- 
ing shot away, and to emphasize the necessity of mak- 
ing the signalman withdraw, he shouted in a voice that 
could be heard above the boom and crash of the guns, 
" Tell that blooming CASABIANCA to go to Hell out 
of it NOW." 

Reverting to the Excellent (Commander Saurin) and 
Bustard (Lieut. McGuire), whatever damage they did 
I never heard, but one couldn't help admiring them for 
their untiring efforts and their plucky obstinacy. They 
took hours to get into position and, once within range 
of the enemy's guns, they stopped there until their am- 
munition was gone or the day was spent, and then 
plugged stolidly away homeward to their anchorage for 



KEEPING THE SEAS 25 

another load of shell. Their crews would work all night 
to avoid missing any fun and, in the early morning, 
these two toy ships would be the first to weigh, by hours; 
but in spite of their five knots maximum speed, they were 
never adrift from their places when bombardments 
again commenced. 

We in the destroyers patrolled the Belgian coast at 
night and, closing into the shore, had a splendid view 
of the burning houses and bursting projectiles as the two 
opposing armies made battle in the night. It was all 
unutterably weird and sad to watch the devastation of 
the Flanders seaside health resorts. 

Personally I shall never forget the red flashes of the 
exploding shells and the uncanny flames that burnt in 
the houses and showed through the shattered windows 
of the Belgian Villas at Westende, Middelkerke and 
other villages. Ostend did not suffer much, the Germans 
had advanced too quickly and the Allies never shelled or 
bombed this town intentionally, although it was always 
full of Germans once they had taken possession. 

It was, for most of us, the first real war we had faced, 
although a fair number of officers and men had taken 
part in the small African wars. Admiral Hood, in par- 
ticular had had his share in the Soudan and Somaliland. 

During the latter part of October, the Germans 
brought up some 8-inch naval guns, which made things 
very unpleasant for us. On October 28th, 19 14, Hubert 
Wauton was killed. He was the first Sixth Flotilla 
destroyer captain to lose his life in the war. His ship 
was struck by an 8-inch shell, which accounted for 
twenty-four of his sixty men. 

Wauton'c destroyer was the Falcon, an obsolete ship 
of 375 tons. She was taken out of action by the sub- 



26 KEEPING THE SEAS 

lieutenant, Du Boulay, her second in command. She fired 
back with her puny armament of one 12-pounder and 
five 6-pounder guns, until the shots no longer reached 
the shore. The Falcon was at the time patrolling the 
N.E. channnel off Ostend, close to the Stroom Bank. 

Commander Williams, in the Syren, stood over to 
assist the Falcon and we, in the Mohawk, made over in 
her direction at full speed, but suddenly the Syren ran 
ashore on one of the shallow banks. It was useless to 
stand on after her with our greater draught. With a 
sigh of relief I saw the Falcon get clear of the shells that 
were falling into the sea west of the Stroom Bank, the 
Syren throw up a great wave with her propellers work- 
ing in shallow water and she came off the bank unhurt 
by the enemy, though her propellers were badly bent. 

The general routine of the bombarding flotilla was 
to get into position at dawn and carry out the " plaster- 
ing " of the positions indicated as thoroughly as possible. 
When the sun set and the light faded, the bombarding 
flotilla withdrew to Dunkirk Roads, while some of the 
ever watchful destroyers cruised to the eastward during 
the dark hours to protect the gunboats and monitors 
from a surprise attack. 

Admiral Hood used to meet at the "Chapeau Rouge" 
Hotel the captains and gunnery officers of the ill-assorted 
squadron to discuss with the military Headquarters 
Staff the results of the day's shooting and arrange the 
plan for the morrow. I may say that I think we all en- 
joyed this business immensely. The youthful, quick- 
brained Admiral, with his cheery smile and perfectly de- 
lightful mannner, won our hearts completely. 

We had it very much our own way to begin with, 
and then the greatest danger to the firing ships was that 



KEEPING THE SEAS 27 

of runnning ashore, for they were very close in. But as 
time progressed and the Germans advanced, our little 
force was out-ranged and out-matched. The enemy were 
practically in Nieuport by November, and there is no 
doubt they intended to keep the coast. Heavy guns 
were brought up and mounted and the work of construc- 
tion was taken in hand with German military thorough- 
ness. Admiral Hood added the old Revenge to his 
off-shore squadron. She had four 13.5-inch 67-ton guns 
and ten old pattern 6-inch. It was very hard to find out 
what effective damage we did, for spotting arrangements 
were not so elaborate and accurate then as they became 
in the latter half of the war. The Revenge " got it in 
the neck " once or twice, but she couldn't have been 
sunk easily for there is no great depth of water in the 
West Deep, from which channel she was operated. 
Captain Hughes-Onslow, R.N., commanded the Re- 
venge, and he rode the old iron war-horse into action 
like a Paladin. 

This vessel has had her name changed to the Re- 
doubtable, to make way for the new Revenge with her 
armament of eight 15-inch guns. 

The Venerable (Captain V. H. G. Bernard), a rather 
less obsolete battleship, was also employed for some time 
bombarding on this coast. I had the honour of sound- 
ing out and marking a channel for her work through the 
Zuidcoote pass into the West Deep. The Venerable, I 
believe, escaped any punishment, although she fired many 
12-inch shells at the Huns from Nieuport Roads. 

The Mohawk was attached to the Venerable for a 
while, and it was a sad day for us when she was with- 
drawn and we were sent back to take up our proper 
work of monotonous patrol. 



28 KEEPING THE SEAS 

It was late in 19 14 that Dunkirk became a semi- 
English naval base. Various wings of the Royal Naval 
Air Service settled their headquarters in the vicinity of 
this fort. It was here that I met Commander Sampson, 
although I made my bow to this distinguished flying 
man under somewhat undignified circumstances. To be 
honest, I had been up for a joy ride, and as we landed at 
the Camp of No. IV. Wing we came rather heavily to 
earth and broke a strut or two. My hat was knocked off 
and I blushed at meeting the Boss, for I had no excuse 
for joy riding. 

However, he said nothing about that and when my 
friend and pilot apologised for bringing me down such a 
smack, I smiled, and innocently said, " Isn't that the 
ordinary way of landing? " The flying men looked at 
me rather suspiciously and then took me into their hut 
and gave me a capital lunch. 

War had come upon us so suddenly that the Air Force 
organisation was by no means perfect. The airmen 
would fight and bomb with refreshing zeal, but were not 
then such advanced and scientific observers as they later 
on became. But it was at Dunkirk that we Dover birds 
really got together with the R.N.A.S. and learned to 
know them and to appreciate what enormous possibilities 
there were in flying, and in flying men's assistance in va- 
rious naval work. They were never idle, these men; if 
the weather was unfit for flying and there was nothing 
they could invent better than to annoy the enemy, One, 
who shall be nameless, would finish his glass of port and 
say, " Come on, you fellows, let's go and shoot Uhlans," 
and away would roll the great drab coloured motor-car. 
It went everywhere, and seldom returned without a 



KEEPING THE SEAS 29 

German helmet or two, which had scarcely cooled off the 
warmth derived from the late lamented owner. 

Many Belgian refugees flocked into Dunkirk and 
were taken on board the steamers sent there to transport 
them to our own shores. The procession of this sort 
was a sad one, and it left an impression on one's memory 
not easy to efface. The wistful looking children, the 
bent old men, the indignant womenfolk of all ages; 
each one bearing some part of the family property — as 
much as could be carried away; the rickety carts over- 
loaded with "household goods" from cottage, shop 
and villa; wheelbarrows, handcarts, perambulators and 
trucks ; anything in fact that could be utilised — all 
stacked with goods, pathetically overladen. 

Sailors are funny characters, but for real spontaneous 
generosity, give me the " British Blue." It happened 
like an explosion; one evening, a pitiful, hungry line of 
dejected human beings came past the Mohawk; some- 
one handed a cake to a little wild-eyed child; you might 
have put a match to a train of gunpowder — the 
" Mohawks " dashed on to the messdeck and in a matter 
of seconds we hadn't a vestige of eatable food on board 
— stokers with jampots, men with sardines, stewards 
with oranges, apples and biscuits — I watched, for I had 
nothing to give. Our youthful steward had cleared 
the wardroom. 

I often think of those Belgian refugees, of their soft- 
eyed, grateful looks, and as often of the tough crowd 
I commanded in the Mohawk. Perhaps the toughness 
was only skin-deep after all. 



CHAPTER III 

The Winter of 1914-1915 

In the winter of 19 14-15, the submarine campaign be- 
gan, and the destroyers of the Sixth Flotilla were hard 
put to it. To my mind, this first winter took more out of 
the destroyer crews than anything we subsequently faced. 
The light cruisers had patrolled as a support for the 
destroyers to fall back upon if overwhelmed, but on 
the morning of October 31st, 19 14, the aircraft carrier 
Hermes (formerly a second-class cruiser) was sunk by 
an enemy submarine near the outer Ruytingen Shoal, and 
orders came down from the Admiralty that no vessel 
except a destroyer, or a scout at full speed was to cross 
the channel during daylight hours. The fat was in the 
fire, the patrolling cruisers were withdrawn, and the 
destroyers had to be organised to patrol the areas which 
had been formerly watched over by the four light cruis- 
ers or scouts of the Attentive class; it meant more 
patrolling than ever. 

This was not the first visit of the U boat, for one 
late September afternoon, the Captain (D) in the 
Attentive himself had sighted a submarine with her 
periscope just showing; in a flash the engines had been 
put to full speed and the helm starboarded, but the sub- 
marine had just had time to dive before being rammed. 
She had fired a torpedo first, however, and this ran along 

30 



KEEPING THE SEAS 31 

the port side of the Attentive, missing her by inches. 
Had it not been for Captain Johnson's action we should 
have undoubtedly lost the Attentive, as the torpedo ran 
beautifully for striking her amidships at the original 
course and speed. 

Everybody began to see submarines after this; the 
fins of black fish and rorquals were frequently taken for 
periscopes, and reported as such. Flotsam, and all sorts 
of wreckage, with anything vertical sticking out of it 
that might be mistaken for the offensive periscope was 
classified as such, and the poor destroyers hardly went 
a dog-watch without receiving the oft-recurring signal, 

" Submarine sighted in position , proceed at full 

speed and search area." 

Whouf ! It made us tired. The signal was no sooner 
shown than the destroyers at Dover, resting or oiling, 
would slip from their moorings and shoot out of harbour, 
with ever increasing speed, and race to the area indicated. 
The senior officer of the bunch would organise the search 
and the Dover surf deer would plunge their bows into 
winter seas, take sheets of cold green water on board and 
shake themselves free, ten times in the minute. 

This was long before the days of the depth charge; 
we had nothing to sink the wily submarine with but the 
gun, torpedo and ram. Some of us improvised explosive 
charges of gun-cotton which, thrown overboard, were 
fired by means of Bickford's fuse, or by electric circuit 
attached to a wire which was strong enough to tow the 
charge along. 

In December I was transferred to the Viking, and I 
was delighted with the change, for although the Mohawk, 
was a good little ship, she had only 12-pounder guns, 
while the Viking was armed with 4-inch, and was bigger 



32 KEEPING THE SEAS 

by two hundred tons. The Viking had one peculiarity 
which distinguished her from all other destroyers — 
she had six funnels. 

Before we finally say good-bye to the Mohawk, just 
pause a minute while I tell you the strange story of the 
Goben and the Breslau. I was unfortunate enough to 
damage the Mohawk through what, in the destroyer 
service, is known as " an error in judgment " ; in other 
words the damage was not serious enough and the 
circumstances not black enough to merit any severe 
censure being passed upon me. Nevertheless, I had to 
be docked at Portsmouth for the damage to be made 
good. I hated being out of it, and so did my first 
lieutenant — accordingly we made an occasion to visit 
Dover. 

It happened that Captain (D) wished for two large 
harbour launches to be sent to Dover for the purpose of 
attending on the destroyers. The Racehorse had at- 
tempted to tow one round, but that steam launch sank 
in the process. There was no transport available, so 
Allen, my first lieutenant, took one boat and I the 
other. In beautiful autumn weather, we started one 
morning for Dover. The funny old steamboats only 
went six knots and late in the afternoon of the first day 
we arrived off Newhaven. Being wet through, stiff and 
weary, we proposed to enter harbour and spend the 
night there, as there was no great hurry for us. We 
approached the harbour entrance and were hailed and 
stopped by the examination steamer. An officious gentle- 
man came on board and, ignoring my explanations, 
proceeded to search both boats. 

A marine signalman on board the examination steamer 
watched this assiduous visitor properly and thoroughly 



KEEPING THE SEAS 33 

examine us. The marine was mildly amused, then 
bored, and finally he spat with contempt over the side 
and respectfully suggested to the examination officer 
that we were " 'Orl right." But the gentleman persisted 
and I remonstrated in vain. It was obvious that they 
didn't often examine " ships " bound for Newhaven. 
Our small steamboats were only 42 feet long and this 
conscientious somebody had kept us stopped for half-an- 
hour. Suddenly a dirty, black face popped up from the 
engine-room of Allen's boat and exclaimed: "'Ere, 
mister, the gime's up." The visitor superciliously asked 
what he meant. " The gime's up, mister, we may as 
well own up, this 'ere's the Goben and that's the Bres- 
lau." The faces looking down from the examination 
steamer broadened into a chain of smiles and we were 
then grudgingly given permission to enter harbour. 

We spent a comfortable night with the naval transport 
officers, and assured them of the efficiency of their ex- 
amination service. When we told them the story of 
the Goben and Breslau, one of them sent out for the 
stoker who had " given us away " and very kindly 
presented him with a bottle of beer. I think the stoker 
deserved it. 

The submarine hunts were most unsatisfactory in 
these days, for all the advantages were with the enemy. 
The ruthles submarine warfare had not yet begun in 
earnest, but submarines were freely using the English 
Channel and it is quite honest to say that we couldn't 
prevent them from doing so. Our mines were not so 
deadly as the German types; we had not sufficient, nor 
had we, at this early state of the war, a mine-laying 
organisation capable of blocking the channel. 

So the Dover Destroyer Force performed the inces- 
3 



34 KEEPING THE SEAS 

sant and arduous duties of patrolling and submarine 
hunting, in addition to doing the requisite escort work 
for the cross-channnel steamers, which carried large 
numbers of our soldiers to Calais or Boulougne. 

The spirits of the destroyer crews were not easily 
damped. The war had not begun to drag and we were 
fresh, zealous and cheerful. Nobody could have studied 
our comfort better than our Captain ( D ) ; he considered 
us in every way and he got the very best out of us; he 
certainly had the goodwill of the business. As the war 
progressed we found that there was a limit to destroyer 
endurance. The destroyers themselves needed a rest, 
as well as their crews. 

Accordingly a system of " stand-off " was inaugu- 
rated and after about 1 1 days' running, each boat was 
granted a three days' stand-off, if it could possibly be 
managed. How we did appreciate these rests ! We 
were allowed ashore, although we could not leave the 
precincts of the port. 

Little tinkering jobs were undertaken in the engine- 
rooms. A certain number of boilers were cleaned and 
small repairs were carried out by the Sixth Flotilla 
repair staff. This patch-up and sticking-plaster brigade 
worked under Engineer-Commander Parsons and 
Lieutenant-Commander Lewin, and I must pay them the 
compliment of saying that from top to bottom they were 
out to help. Day after day, night after night, they 
plodded away to make us a sea-keeping flotilla. 

It will be realised by all who have seen Dover Har- 
bour in winter, even if only from the shore, that it is 
a harbour merely in name. Oiling and coaling in bad 
weather were extremely difficult businesses. The tidal 
streams were so variable and strong that even when 



KEEPING THE SEAS 35 

the winds blew with gale force, the oilers and colliers 
would at times lie right athwart the wind and the 
poor destroyers would bump their light steel sides 
against the heavier iron-plating of the oil steamer or 
coal supply ship, as the case might be. 

Fenders were useless, for those of the heaviest pattern 
would be chafed into pulp and the chains which sup- 
ported them snapped in no time. The hand-rails of the 
torpedo craft were in a constant state of " brokenness," 
side-plating was dented in a most unsightly fashion, and 
the sentiments which found expression concerning those 
who were responsible for the selection and construction 
of Dover Harbour are quite impossible to write down 
in respectable English. 

Dover as a destroyer base was an unfortunate choice 
for those who had to suffer it as such. My friend, the 
author of " Nubian Nonsense," appreciated the pro- 
tection of Dunkirk Harbour, contrasted with Dover, 
when he penned the following lines : — 

"THERE IS A HAPPY LAND." 

There is a lovely place, 

Called Dover Bay, 
Where it snows and rains and blows 

Almost every day. 
Oh! it's bliss without alloy, 
Oh lit is our greatest joy, 
To roll our guts out at the buoy 

In Dover Bay. 

There is another place 

Known as Dunkirk, 
Where destroyers always go, 

When tired of work. 
There they never do patrol, 
Never burn their oil or coal, 
Don't know what it is to roll, 

Safe in Dunkirk. 



36 KEEPING THE SEAS 

A division of Dover destroyers was usually kept at 
Dunkirk to act in conjunction with the French as a 
cutting-off force, in case of a German destroyer raid in 
the Channel, or Downs. Lucky were the T.B.D.'s 
selected for this service. The Dunkirk destroyers had 
their duties, such as an occasional coast reconnaissance, 
a daily trip with mails, etc., but during those long, dark 
nights, with howling gales, their crews turned in, snugly 
secure from the perils of the Straits and the dreadful 
discomforts of Dover Harbour (excuse a snigger at the 
latter word) . 

The first war-time Christmas arrived about the time 
when we had learned to know the Hun, not only as a 
great military organiser, but as a low-down, lying 
sneak. 

We expected the Germans would make some great 
naval effort on Christmas Day, and, although it was my 
turn to stand-off, the boats of my division volunteered 
to patrol, for we were all unmarried captains and it was 
not much to give up a day ashore in Dover, at this time 
of the year. However, good as were our intentions, we 
had no say in the matter and so spent our Christmas 
Day in harbour and made merry at the Burlington 
Hotel that night, while our less fortunate comrades 
shivered on their frail bridges and drew what comfort 
they could from an occasional glimpse of the South 
Goodwin light and the slow, jerky illuminations of the 
Dover and Calais searchlights. 

But it was a relief to the Viking's division to have a 
quiet Christmas day in harbour. The weather was fine, 
the sun shone, and my splendid ship's company of 
seventy good men and true mustered aft at 10 a.m., 
and listened to my amateur efforts as the vicar of 



KEEPING THE SEAS 37 

our eleven - hundred - and - forty - three - tons - displace- 
ment parish. 

The very short divine service included that one prayer 
so well known to us all in the naval service. I read it 
through for it had its place even in the narrow, crowded 
quarterdecks of the little destroyers from Dover, and it 
has been included in the prayer-book with modifica- 
tions to suit the existing monarch, since 1662, or there- 
abouts. 

After service, we mustered our sailors, stokers, and 
signalmen by open list, that is to say, the coxswain called 
each man's name and, hat in hand, he stepped forward 
to receive the small but welcome present from Princess 
Mary's Christmas Fund. Then we lined the side and 
cheered as the Amazon and her division left for a Christ- 
mas patrol. It did me good to see the Amazon; she 
was the prettiest of the class, as she should be — the 
only lady in the Tribals, and it did one good to see 
Oliphant handle his ship. 

When we had finished gazing at the unlucky ones, we 
turned to home comforts in the shape of Christmas 
cheer. The officers visited the mess deck, which was 
adorned in a way that left no doubts in the mind as to 
the state of the ship's company's spirits. The decora- 
tions were wonderful and the food and sweets available 
left nothing to be desired. Gibbs, my predecessor, had 
sent a turkey for every mess, and unknown benefactors 
had showered boxes and tins of good things upon the 
ship's company of the Viking. It was just about this 
time, in fact, that a Mr. Bertie Young appeared upon 
the scene and adopted all my sailors. 

I had never heard of him, much less met him, but he 
developed all the faculties of the fairy godmother, and 



38 KEEPING THE SEAS 

be it Christmas, or Easter, autumn or summer, Bertie 
Young's neat hand-writing would surely appear, convey- 
ing the information that such and such a parcel " con- 
taining 10,000 cigarettes, 70 pipes, 25 lbs. of chocolate, 
etc., etc., has this day been despatched to you, care of 
the Naval Mail Officer, Dover." Bertie Young was a 
good friend to the Viking, and his friendship has ex- 
tended to every ship I have ever commanded, as well as 
to many I have not. 

The Germans did not worry us with their submarines 
this Christmas, and I, for one, spent the afternoon in 
a blissful, careless sleep. 

A destroyer was not given to every one who volun- 
teered for the command, and one well-known officer, 
Lieutenant-Commander Harry Rawson, was detailed 
for coaling duty at Dover, which duty he would have 
gladly exchanged with any of the Sixth Flotilla skip- 
pers. Rawson was one of the cheeriest people imagin- 
able and he gave a Christmas dinner to the toilers 
of the Straits. We quite forgot the war until the end of 
dinner, when we drank to absent friends, and we did 
not forget our flotilla pals at sea. 

It was, I think, about this time that the Modified 
Sweep was fitted to the larger destroyers of the Dover 
Patrol. This was the first of the anti-submarine devices 
with which we were fitted officially. Being the first, it 
was probably the worst, for we had some very clever 
brains at work in the anti-submarine division at the 
Admiralty; and the gentlemen in that department, once 
they got going, never retrograded. Roughly speaking, 
the modified sweep consisted of a double line of high- 
explosive charges, towed at two different depths. The 
charges were made buoyant by means of wooden floats 



KEEPING THE SEAS 39 

attached to them, and the whole concern was 
adjusted to keep a certain depth by means of a 
wooden kite. 

On commencing a submarine hunt, the modified 
sweep was put over and towed about in the vicinity. 
The sweep was able to reach anything from the surface 
down to a depth of ten fathoms if it was properly 
worked, and it could be electrically fired at will. A man 
was always stationed at the firing key, and if anything 
caught in the sweep, the fact was indicated by the 
pulling over of a lever; when this happened, the op- 
erator pressed the key and blew up the submarine, or 
whatever the obstruction happened to be. 

When the Viking had obtained her modified sweep 
and had it properly fitted, I got a lot of submarine 
fellows from H.M.S. Arrogant to come and have a 
look at it. Having made myself acquainted with all 
the details of the deadly device, and the proper method 
of employing it, I proudly explained its working and 
capabilities. 

The submarine captains thought a bit, and then one 
of them dashed all my hopes to the ground by saying, 
" Well, any German submarine who gets caught in a 
fool device like that, bally well deserves to be sunk," 
and the others burst out laughing. So much for the 
modified sweep, but we really did get a submarine once 
by means of this much maligned appliance; it happened 
this way: 

On the 1st of March, 191 5, after a series of gales and 
storms, we suddenly were blessed with a spell of mod- 
erate weather. There was no wind at all, and nothing 
but a heavy swell reminded us of what we had put up 



40 KEEPING THE SEAS 

with. On March 4th, we had foggy weather, and the 
visibility was so indifferent that when I took the Viking 
out on patrol, it was impossible to make out where sea 
and sky met. The damp mist rolled up Channel and 
one's eyes were strained with the constant searching in 
this very uncertain light. 

The young eyes of my sub-lieutenant, Frank Young- 
husband, suddenly made out the grey form of a sub- 
marine about half-a-mile away; he pointed it out and we 
went full speed at her, firing our foremost 4-inch gun 
and eagerly hoping to ram. But the increase from 15 
to 33 knots takes a little time and the submarine, with 
a few seconds to spare, managed to dive before we could 
strike her. Our shots fell very close, but we did not 
secure a hit; I couldn't understand how the gun-layer 
missed, but I hadn't then tried shooting from a destroyer 
which is heading into a swell at high speed. We 
steamed round the place where the submarine was 
last seen, and rapped out signals which called all the 
Dover destroyers to our position, to the north-east- 
ward of the Varne Shoal. In the meantime, "Fritz" 
had a shot with a torpedo at us. It was reported to 
me by Younghusband, but it ran badly and did not 
come very close. 

We got out our comic old modified sweep, and as each 
destroyer came close to us, she was given an area to 
hunt. The Captain (D) came out from Dover in the 
Maori and took over command of the search. It con- 
tinued for a few hours and we were fortunate enough to 
sight the U boat's periscope from time to time, as the 
fog lifted and the visibility became quite good. Sud- 
denly the Ghurka's sweep caught in an obstruction and 



H 

< 
C 

u 

o 
w 

pq 
O 

£; 

Q 

< 

pq 

O 

cq 

m 

O 

H 

o 



KEEPING THE SEAS 41 

was promptly exploded. Immediately afterwards a sub- 
marine slowly rose to the surface. 

The Ghnrka and Maori both opened fire, and one of 
their shells struck the conning tower of the submarine 
just as her captain appeared through the hatch with his 
hands above his head in the attitude of surrender. 

He was slightly burned in the back of the neck by the 
shell. The remaining destroyers hurried to the scene, 
boats were lowered and every one of the crew of the 
enemy submarine was saved. The vessel proved to be 
" U 8." She was taken in tow by H.M.S. Ure, a 
" river " class destroyer which had now become one 
of the Sixth Flotilla. 

The Germans, however, did not mean their vessel to 
be captured in this way; they had opened the sea cocks 
and their boat was rapidly sinking. She lay for a short 
time on the surface with a heavy list, for all the world 
like a great disabled fish, then she sank in sixteen 
fathoms of water. Her crew were taken into Dover and 
placed on board the Arrogant, parent ship for our own 
submarines. 

That night " U 8's " captain and officers had a good 
dinner on board and our own submarine officers, after 
a few gentlemanly leg-pulls, invited their prisoners to 
sing the " Hymn of Hate." 

The captains of the Ghurka and Maori were awarded 
the D.S.O. for this, and several D.S.M.'s were given 
to their crews. The man who pressed the firing key 
and blew up the submarine with the " modified sweep " 
deserved his D.S.M., for it was an achievement 
equal to the slaying of a lion with the jawbone of 
an ass. 



42 KEEPING THE SEAS 

There were many occasions when we in the " Dover 
family " had every reasonable excuse for thinking that 
we had bagged submarines; it was a thankless task, 
this hunting business, when we were so deficient in 
arms to meet them with. The Admiralty devised more 
and more schemes and invented weapon after weapon 
with which to assist our efforts, and we were only too 
ready to give them a trial. I heard from one of 
my old Antarctic Expedition mates that, amongst the 
inventive suggestions for the destruction of the 
enemy submarine, the following were sent in to 
the Board of Inventions and Research, where he was 
employed : — 

I. Put an enormous quantity of " Eno's fruit salt " 
into the sea in the English Channel. 

The result will be a great change in the specific gravity 
of the water, consequently any submerged submarines 
will either sink or float. If they sink, well and good; 
if they float, destroyers and seaplanes can rush out and 
destroy them. 

II. The English Channel should be so filled with 
ships that there would be no room for a submarine to 
come up and fire her torpedoes. 

Naturally the submarine sinkings depended on the 
number of patrol craft, etc., and on the output of anti- 
submarine devices. 

Whatever may be said on the subject, the Allies only 
sank about half-a-dozen submarines in the first half- 
year of the war, and the following table shows how, in 
spite of all the howling in certain sections of the Press, 
the submarine sinkings went up in a way that must have 
put the fear of God into all but the most valorous of 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



43 



the " kultured curs " 
honour. 



whom the Kaiser delighted to 



Year. 
1914 
1915 
1916 
1917 
1918 



Average number of 
Submarines sunk. 



1 

1.5 

2 
5.5 

7 



per month 



CHAPTER IV 

The Auxiliary Patrol 

Early in 19 15 we had a great deal of assistance 
through the development of that magnificent service, 
" The Auxiliary Patrol." 

To begin with, it was composed of two sections: — 
I. The Trawler Patrol. 
II. The Drifter Patrol. 

The Trawler Patrol was under the control of Captain 
(retired) W. Vansittart Howard, R.N., who also was 
at the head of the Dover mine-sweeping administration. 
The trawlers were armed and they worked such patrols 
as were obviously unsuitable for destroyers. They were 
very slow moving compared to our light and dainty 
vessels, but they did yeoman patrol service close to the 
coasts and between the shoals, besides being employed 
as mine-layers, mine-sweepers and in a dozen other ways. 

The drifters, which first came under Captain Hum- 
phrey W. Bowring, R.N., were used to place nets across 
the fairway of the Straits of Dover. We experimented 
with various schemes for net-laying, but the general idea 
was that light nets, supported by surface floats, were 
stretched across the channel between Dover and Cape 
Grisnez and watched by the small wooden steam fishing 
vessels known as drifters. 

By a study of the tides, it became a reasonably easy 
proposition to place these nets in such a fashion that a 
continuous line reached across the Channel and this line 

44 



KEEPING THE SEAS 45 

drifted between the Varne Shoal to the westward and 
the outer Ruytingen Shoal to the eastward. Providing 
the weather was reasonably fine, the nets would not 
require lifting; if the winds were strong the nets would 
drift up too far and then the drifters would haul them 
in and re-shoot them as directed. There were about 
half-a-dozen boats in the division, and each division had 
an R.N.R. sub-lieutenant or lieutenant in charge. An 
armed yacht, usually commanded by a naval officer, 
attended on the drifters and took command of the 
whole. 

The drifters' crews were wonderful, and considering 
the changed conditions they were called upon to face, 
I think these fishermen take rank in the first row of those 
who go down to the sea in ships. I am proud to have 
been associated in the Dover Patrol with this crowd. 

If a submarine passed through the nets, the net-line 
would contract and speed away up or down the channel, 
and the drifter would stand by to attack with bomb- 
lance, a sort of giant hand grenade which was the pre- 
cursor of the far more efficient depth charge. She would 
also signal to the nearest destroyer which was patrolling 
in conjunction, and whatever means were available, 
according to the war-epoch, would then be ready at 
hand to attack with. Theoretically, the scheme was 
excellent, but in practice it did not yield any very great 
results. The long runs of bad weather made it difficult 
to keep the nets in more than very approximate position. 

The submarines took to passing through by night, 
runnning I believe, with their conning towers just awash, 
ready to dive if attacked. 

They seldom, if ever, attacked the patrol boats, as 
they were out for bigger game. 



46 KEEPING THE SEAS 

A German submarine captain once told me that he 
would keep his torpedoes for a thousand-ton merchant 
ship in preference to sinking a destroyer or even a small 
cruiser. He said we had so many light cruisers and 
patrol craft that the loss of one or two did not matter to 
England, but the loss of merchant tonnage was un- 
doubtedly losing us the war. Well, it didn't, anyway! 

But to go on with the Auxiliary Patrol. Things were 
moving by 191 5, and Dover Harbour was becoming 
more and more congested; it was so full of ships, big 
and little, that in the bad weather it reminded one of a 
bucket of water being carried along with about a hun- 
dred different sized corks floating in it. 

Collisions were frequent, and one wondered, not why 
they so often occurred, but why they did not occur with 
far greater frequency. 

We all pulled together extremely well, although 
Admiral Hood soon found that he had a very mixed 
team to drive. The auxiliary patrol skippers and deck 
hands came from all parts, including Hull, Aberdeen, 
and the Shetlands, and some of those employed found 
great difficulty in even reading the orders which were 
issued to them from time to time. However, whatever 
their educational drawbacks, every man jack in the 
Auxiliary Patrol had acquired the " habit of the sea." 

The discipline question was a difficult one, and naval 
punishments could not fairly be applied to willing fisher- 
men, (who would work their hands to the bone for the 
country's sake) , if they occasionally had a glass too much 
or in some petty fashion misconducted themselves dur- 
ing their resting time in port. 

It sometimes happened that the patrolling vessels got 
a little way out of their proper course. I fear that the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 47 

destroyers usually put the blame on to the auxiliary 
patrols when this happened, but, on one dark night, 

the moved into the midst of a lot of drifters 

from Ramsgate, and they forthwith challenged her. 
The destroyer took no notice and the senior officer of 
the Ramsgate Patrol being on board one of the drifters, 
he insisted on a reply. None was forthcoming, and so, 

taking a megaphone, Captain , R.N., shouted 

angrily, "What destroyer is that?" "Oh! Go to 

hell," was the 's reply. The challenging then 

ceased and Captain , R.N., reported the matter in 

writing to the Admiral. In the letter he wrote, " The 
language used in replying to my hail convinced me that 
I was talking to a friend." 

Food became more and more expensive in Dover as 
the number of vessels based on the command increased. 
A welcome addition to the small ships' larders was 
afforded by a gratuitous issue of fish from one of the 
trawlers, which was allowed to trawl on our behalf. Fat 
plaice and whiting, Dover soles and turbot came oc- 
casionally our way, and little dietary changes of this 
sort all helped to cheer, and we wanted cheering at times 
for we got the coldest welcome imaginable from the 
grey winter weather and the succession of gales and rain. 

Although not patrollers, I must introduce our friends 
the oilers; they were certainly auxiliaries to the patrol- 
ling forces; one lay in Dover Harbour, always at our 
disposal; and of the oilers, perhaps the Enpion was 
best known. Destroyers were supplied with oil day and 
night by the Eupion; her mate, who never seemed to 
sleep, was an American citizen of Scotch parentage. 
He was a fairly old man, but I never saw him out of 
temper. He was so willing to help us that we, in return, 



48 KEEPING THE SEAS 

made him a welcome guest in the Viking's wardroom, 
where he often disposed of tea and hot-buttered toast 
which our sub-lieutenant made for us at the stove and 
handed out in relays. I don't mean to say that we never 
offered the mate of the Eupion anything stronger than 
tea; we did, and he accepted it when times were fairly 
quiet. 

The Eupion, if I remember right, was not one of the 
vessels classed as Royal Fleet Auxiliaries. Some of the 
oilers were, and their crews were under a special 
Admiralty agreement; I think it rejoiced in the name 
of Agreement Form T. 124.Z. 

I heard of a very smart fireman who had only joined 
up for the war, and signed on under T. 124.Z. He had 
come down to Dover to join one of the Royal Fleet 
Auxiliaries, and in rendering his travelling expenses ac- 
count, he inserted a charge of 55. for a cab fare from 
the Burlington Hotel to the Naval Pier. This amount 
was actually paid him, which is one against the 
Admiralty, for those who know Dover will appreciate 
that the distance is only about 60 yards. 



CHAPTER V 

Flag Changes and some more Belgian Coast Work 

In the spring of 191 5, Rear- Admiral R. H. S. Bacon, 
D.S.O., was appointed to command the Dover Patrol; 
our gallant and brilliant Admiral Hood was transferred 
to a sea-going command, and subsequently he hoisted his 
flag in the battle cruiser Invincible, as Rear-Admiral of 
the Third Battle Cruiser Squadron. To our lasting 
regret in the Sixth Flotilla, we heard a year later of the 
loss of this splendid Admiral friend of ours at the Bat- 
tle of Jutland. 

Admiral Beatty spoke in the Jutland despatch of the 
magnificent manner in which Rear-Admiral Hon. H. L. 
A. Hood, C.B., M.V.O., D.S.O., brought his squadron 
into action, saying, " I desire to record my great regret 
at his loss, which is a national misfortune." In the 
earlier part of the same despatch Admiral Beatty, 
speaking of the Third Battle Cruiser Squadron, com- 
manded by Admiral Hood, said, " I ordered them to 
take station ahead, which was carried out magnificently, 
Rear-Admiral Hood bringing his squadron into action 
ahead in a most inspiring manner, worthy of his great 
naval ancestors." 

Admiral Bacon had to face greater difficulties than 
his predecessor, for the Germans were launching sub- 
marines at an alarming rate. If they could be prevented 
4 49 



5 o KEEPING THE SEAS 

from passing through the English Channel, the ocean- 
going submarines from Wilhelmshaven, would lose about 
a week's effective time out of each cruise. 

To make submarines pass to the northward of the 
British Isles, the Dover Straits had to be blocked. In 
19 1 5 we were unable to do this effectively, because the 
necessary material was not then available. A barrage 
was placed between Folkestone and Grisnez, which was 
a menace to the submarines; but the strong tides and 
heavy weather played havoc with it. 

The wire entanglements were supported by a large 
number of mooring buoys, and every now and again one 
of these enormous buoys would break away and drift 
about the Channel. A number of them stranded on the 
Belgian coast, while others went ashore on the Good- 
wins; they were a menace to navigation but, to the 
credit of the look-outs of the Dover patrol, no collision 
ever occurred with one of them. 

A much better barrage with mine-nets was placed 
across the Channnel in 191 6. It extended from the 
South Goodwin to the Snouw Bank off Dunkirk, and for 
some time this kept submarines out of the Channel. 
They did not like these barrages, but the submarines 
eventually were fitted with net cutters and, after a few 
had successfully won through the Straits of Dover, the 
Germans became more daring and used the Straits with 
much greater frequency. The result was that the sink- 
ings of merchant ships went up alarmingly and other 
measures eventually were adopted, which, as will be 
seen later, upset the Hun once more. 

Admiral Bacon very truly stated that it was a case of 
" going one better " always. First the enemy invented 
some offensive weapon and then the Allies counter- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 51 

invented. In every case the enemy's triumph lasted 
only until the remedy was " put on the market." 

In the summer of 191*5, the Dover Patrol com- 
menced to harass the Hun from the sea again. A num- 
ber of monitors had been built during the winter for 
offensive action in the various theatres of war, but they 
were not ready until about July, and in consequence the 
enemy was left pretty well alone to fortify the Belgian 
coast from the Dutch frontier to Nieuport. He cer- 
tainly did it well, but his defences were not so wonder- 
ful this year as after the second winter, when they were 
really worthy of admiration. 

It was trying to the Admiral's patience for him to 
find that the monitors, which eventually became part of 
his command, were not to be relied upon. They had 
been roughly and hurriedly constructed, and the 12- 
inch turrets taken from old battleships of the Majestic 
class, fell short of his expectations. 

The commands of monitors were eagerly sought after 
by commanders and junior captains, who were anxious 
for some fun, and eventually we had six of them : — 

Sir John Moore . . . . Commander S. R. Miller. 

Prince Rupert . . . . Commander H. O. Reinold. 

Prince Eugene . . . . Captain E. Wigram. 

Lord Clive . . . . Commander C. Carter. 

General Crauford . . . . Commander E. Altham. 

General Wolfe . . . . Commander N. Diggle. 

mounting a couple of 12-inch guns as their main arma- 
ment, and a few guns of small calibre for anti-aircraft 
and anti-destroyer purposes. 

The first three to arrive were the Sir John Moore, 
Prince Rupert, and Lord Clive. Their speed was hardly 
greater than 6 l / 2 knots, although the "greyhounds" of 
the squadron boasted they could do 8. The load dis- 



52 KEEPING THE SEAS 

placement of these vessels was about 5,900 tons. Their 
length was about 335 feet and beam nearly 90. They 
were fitted with bulges, which made them practically 
innocuous to torpedo attack, and they only drew io^4 
feet of water. They waddled about like great ducks 
and were the butt of the destroyer officers' wit. The 
monitor captains were always conscious of the absurdity 
of their vessels' sea-going appearance, but they smil- 
ingly kept going whatever they were up against. 

About the time the monitors made their bow on the 
stage of the Belgian coast operations, Admiral Bacon 
selected the Viking to be his particular destroyer in 
which to move about the Patrol. It was not very pleas- 
ing to our Captain (D) to have one of his fastest and 
best armed destroyers practically withdrawn from the 
general duties, which were heavy, to say the least of 
it. But an Admiral is an Admiral and can choose what 
vessel he likes from his command, and so it came to pass 
that in 19 15 I saw much more of what was going on 
than any other Dover destroyer captain. 

We had an unlucky start with the monitors. The 
working gear of the turrets was not all it might be; they 
felt the operation of being hurriedly put out of the 
Majestic, where they had done good service, and being 
rebuilt into the monitors; actually they showed signs of 
being a dismal failure. 

The Admiral and his staff, assisted by the crews of 
the monitors, did all in their power to hustle the turrets 
into good working order, but they had a fearful task in 
front of them. The monitors were shepherded together 
in a channel amongst the shoals and sandbanks which lie 
in the Thames estuary. The place selected was Middle 
Deep, and here, away from the sight of all, their crews 



KEEPING THE SEAS 53 

were exercised and practised, their turrets were worked 
and their guns fired until, by process of elimination, the 
numerous defects were made good and the slow steaming 
squadron prepared to bring off a surprise bombardment 
of the Belgian coast. How glad those in the monitors 
must have been when at last three of the ships were 
really ready for action. I myself had made many a trip 
to Chatham and Sheerness with the Admiral, who him- 
self could then be seen carrying a great piece of piping 
or some other component part of the turret gear for 
repair or replacement " with all possible despatch." I 
never saw a man with such obstinate energy or such 
firmness of purpose. 

The first bombardment was directed against the mili- 
tary defences, ammunition factories, harbour works and 
lock-gates at Zeebrugge. The procession of ships had 
to leave its anchorage in time to ensure being in position 
for bombarding by daylight. For the first Zeebrugge 
bombardment we had to cross from the Thames estuary 
via the Galloper Shoal and make a long detour to the 
northward in order to avoid the English minefields. A 
more extraordinary flotilla was surely never seen. 

The Admiral flew his flag on the monitor Sir John 
Moore; following him came the Lord Clive and Prince 
Rupert, and in attendance were destroyers, drifters, 
yachts and mine-sweepers, also four large steam lighters 
named the Bickford, Lewin, Grans ha and Curran. At 
the standard monitor sea-speed of six knots, the pro- 
cession moved across the North Sea. The sweepers, old 
paddle-wheel pleasure boats, led the way, sweeping for 
mines in the path of this unusual squadron. 

The destroyers scouted on the flanks and zig-zagged 
ahead and astern. We scouted at from 12 to 15 knots 



54 KEEPING THE SEAS 

speed, and our constant appearances and disappearances 
as we worked around the squadron in the darkness must 
have been very nerve-racking to the drifters, which were 
steaming in two lines to port and starboard of the 
monitors. There were no collisions, however, and the 
station-keeping was good, which was creditable to those 
in the small auxiliary vessels, who had never worked 
with a squadron, and were unaccustomed to alter course 
movements en masse by dark. 

Fortunately we had fine still weather, and still more 
fortunately we were not molested by the enemy, for our 
destroyer force was not strong, and it was of necessity 
split up into half-penny numbers by the nature of its 
look-out work. A single division of well-organised de- 
stroyers could have made mince-meat out of the drift- 
ers and mine-sweepers in no time. The monitors could 
not have used their 12-inch guns, and they had no 
secondary armament at that time worthy of the name. 
The fighting force available consisted of half-a-dozen 
Tribals and a couple of thirty-knotters, which could not 
easily have got together in time to put up any good 
fight. 

But Admiral Bacon was like the fellow in Old Luk- 
Oie's " Green Curve," who learned the inclination and 
character of his adversary; he just about sized up the 
Hun and did precisely what he liked with the material 
at his disposal. The Admiral took his very immobile 
squadron about as he pleased, and so far from interfer- 
ing with his plans at all, the German Navy might not 
have existed. We had to prepare against submarine 
attacks, but we were never inconvenienced by them in 
any coast bombardments. 

The difficulties of spotting were a great handicap, and 



KEEPING THE SEAS 55 

in order to make sure of doing military damage, the 
Admiral had conceived the idea of placing tall tripods on 
the shallow banks off the coast, to be used as observa- 
tion stations. These tripods were constructed in Dover 
and used for rehearsal purposes when the monitors did 
their bombardment practice runs in the Thames estuary. 

Before daybreak, on August 23rd, the four tripod 
carriers had taken up their appointed positions and 
lowered their tripods on to the selected shoals. The 
light was all in our favour. To seaward, a dark sky 
made the tripod carriers invisible to the batteries ashore, 
while the prominent objects on the low-lying coast were 
boldly silhouetted against a good light skyline. As day 
broke, it found the monitors in line abreast, in perfect 
position for the appointed operation. The Sir John 
Moore fired her first round to time almost within a sec- 
ond. The observers, perched on the small platforms 
which surmounted the tripods, carefully noted the fall of 
shot and flashed back by oxy-acetylene lamp the results. 
Two sets of observers, well practised at this work, were 
necessary, and once the signals were received on board 
the monitors, the shots were quickly plotted and the 
guns lifted onto the target with the various corrections 
applied. Everything worked according to plan ; the tri- 
pods were quite close to the shore, but they were so small 
and the background of dark sky was so bad, that the 
enemy can hardly have noticed their presence. The 
bombardment was undertaken at high water and the tops 
of the tripods were only three or four feet out of the sea. 

The attendant carrier-vessels, with two drifters for 
life-saving purposes, stood by a half-mile or so away. 
These vessels were seen indistinctly and a number of 
salvoes was fired at them from shore batteries, but the 
enemy cannot have seen the monitors, as no shot was 



S6 KEEPING THE SEAS 

fired near them. While the bombardment continued, 
the little drifters spread their nets as an anti-submarine 
zareba around the firing ships. They might have been 
quietly fishing for herrings; no one on board took the 
slightest notice of the shore batteries efforts. A division 
of destroyers tripped daintily up and down the net line 
to shoreward of the drifters and two or three more 
patrolled to seaward, lest by chance a casual submarine 
might catch the monitors unawares and get into position 
for torpedoing, whilst all eyes were interestedly gazing 
at the shore-line. 

The chill, moist morning air seemed to work through 
our damp clothing, and the night's vigil made some of 
us heavy of eyelid, but one could not help feeling amused 
at the spectacle which presented itself. 

As the sun rose, the shore line showed up better and 
better, the chimneys of Solvey Factory stood clear out 
against the sky and the bombardment was concluded in 
deliberate and peaceful fashion, like the closing of a 
text-book. Everything had gone aright, with the ex- 
ception of the number of rounds fired, which were fewer 
than intended, on account of defects which developed 
in the turrets of the Sir John Moore and Prince Rupert. 
The Lord Clive got off her full number of shells, and 
we fired quite enough to satisfy our enemies. 

The signal to conclude the operation was made. The 
monitors waddled their unwieldy forms into single line 
ahead, the mine-sweepers continued their exploratory 
sweep, the tripods were once more approached, their 
observers re-embarked and the tall, trellis-work struc- 
tures capsized on the sandbanks by their attendant 
vessels, the transport ships, who in their turn fell into 
line and slowly steamed after the monitors. The little 
drifters hauled their empty nets aboard, and their di- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 57 

visional leaders hoisted the flag which told them in their 
simple code to " follow father home"; their solemn- 
faced North country firemen put on another shovelful 
of coal and little wisps of smoke stole towards the 
zenith to tell the long, black, waiting destroyers that 
the procession was now complete and that their captains 
might go off their bridges to get their weary heads down 
on the flat, damp chart-house cushions and take a couple 
of hours' rest. 



CHAPTER VI 

Bombardments and a Few Diversions 
"the belgian coast." 

The A.D.P stood on the bridge, 

Maneuvering his ships, 
Taking them as usual, 

For one of their morning trips. 

He took them out of Dunkirk Road, 

He took them to La Panne, 
He turned them sixteen points to port 

And brought them back again. 

The monitors with blistered sides, 

All bulgeous, and their guns 
Are cocked up high into the sky 

To flatten out the Huns. 

The anti-aircraft guns are manned, 

But no one cares a bit, 
For neither bomb nor aircraft gun 

Has ever scored a hit. 

The T.B.D.'s cruise round the fleet, 

They do it night and day, 
The only signal that they get 

Is, "Get out of my way." 

The sweepers sweep at early dawn, 
Their paddles keep on flapping. 

And woe betide the Prussian mine, 
They happen to catch napping. 

The drifters drift with nets in place, 

Deep in the sea so green, 
Though sometimes muddy, though sometimes 
brown, 

To ''straffe" a submarine. 

58 



KEEPING THE SEAS 59 

The seaplane ship sends up her birds, 

They circle in the cloud, 
The Prussian airmen flutter off, 

To fight they are too proud. 

The airmen in the kite balloon 

Are floating on the breeze, 
They get a pound a day for that, 

What lucky men are these! 

And this we do at dawn each day, 

In weather calm or choppy, 
But not a Hun or Prussian gun 

Is seen by Mr. Shoppey.* 

The moral is let's keep our heads, 

And let us all remember, 
A misty morn, a hazy dawn, 

Is certain in September. 

"Nubian Nonsense." 

The foreging poem illustrates the feelings of a very 
junior destroyer captain who had less patience than zeal. 
But it is quite true that the September early morning 
mists interfered greatly with our work. For instance, 
after several vain attempts at bombarding Ostend, the 
weather showed up favourably, and a composite squad- 
ron, very similar to that described in the last chapter, 
set out on the morning of September 7th, 19 15, to carry 
out the bombardment of the harbour works at Ostend. 
But spotting conditions were impossible, and although 
everything was ready and in position for the prescribed 
operation, we were reluctantly forced to abandon our 
programme on account of a low mist, which hid every- 
thing, including the lighthouse which was to be used as 
our aiming mark, or zero point, to work from. We had 
several targets that day, and it was most disappointing 
to see the flotilla crawling back to an anchorage off 
Dunkirk without firing a shot. 

*See end of Chapter. 



60 KEEPING THE SEAS 

The Germans knew all about it, however, and so the 
element of surprise had to be cut out. The " Taubes " 
and " Albatross " machines circled round like great 
birds and took stock of all that was to be seen. No 
sooner had we anchored than they proceeded to bomb 
us good and true. Bombing was not taken seriously 
by the Dover Patrol in those days, for we had read in 
neutral newspapers how Lieut, von Longbow or what- 
ever he called himself, had won the Iron Cross for 
bombing Dover Harbour. 

Whatever he thought he did, von Longbow dropped 
his bombs well outside the harbour. But on this day, 
September 7th, a small bomb hit the Attentive, the ship 
of the Captain (D). Two were killed and seven in- 
jured and a 4-inch gun was disabled. No other successes 
were registered from enemy air attacks for one whole 
year after this in the Dover Command, and so we did 
not trouble our heads about aerial interference. Again 
and again the bombs fell into the water, while we 
leisurely ate our midday meal. But the mist dispersed 
at last, and on the p.m. flood tide another attempt was 
made to carry out our bombardment. The old Redoubt- 
able had been fitted with bulges like a monitor, but she 
drew a great deal of water and was, I believe, employed 
to fire from the West Deep on the buildings used by the 
Germans as barracks at Westende. Her spotting was 
done from tripods, which were soon discovered by the 
enemy when the mists cleared off. 

The 12-inch monitors came into position very nicely 
and opened fire on their objectives. The first shot hit 
the aiming mark and knocked over the lighthouse. This 
was unfortunate, because when the tripod observers 
glanced through their telescopes at the zero mark, it had 



KEEPING THE SEAS 61 

disappeared, and during the delay which followed, the 
enemy fired some ii-inch shells, two or three of which 
struck the Lord Clive without exploding. Whether by 
bomb explosion or gunfire, I do not know, but Com- 
mander Bickford's tripod had the top blown off and his 
observing station was out of action. No spotting results 
were being obtained from the tripods, and as the Lord 
Clive was being hit to no purpose, the signal was made 
to abandon the operation. The Viking, with the Tartar 
standing by, moved shoreward, while the bombarding 
squadron slowly steamed out of range. The Viking 
embarked Lieut. Commander Lewin and party from 
the western tripod. 

Owing to the strong tide, when I put my six-funnelled 
" freak " destroyer alongside the tripod, the vessel was 
swept rather strongly against the trellis-work tower and 
consequently capsized it. The two signal ratings clam- 
bered on board, but Lewin dived into the sea to avoid 
being knocked over. We picked him up quickly, and 
congratulated him on being the only Englishman to 
bathe in public off Ostend this summer season. 

A desultory fire was kept up on the Viking and Tartar 
but to no purpose. We, in the Viking, steamed down to 
meet the little drifter, which had rescued those under 
Commander Bickford, formerly the observation party 
for the eastern tripod. We took them on board, hoisted 
the small boat in which they were being towed and then 
shepherded the drifter out of the danger zone. We 
came back to do the same for the net drifters, which had 
already got in their anti-submarine nets; as usual the 
drifters' crews, although under fire for some time, be- 
haved with the most exemplary coolness, carefully stow- 
ing their nets on board; they were perfectly undaunted. 



62 KEEPING THE SEAS 

No words of mine can ever express the admiration I 
felt for those cheery, willing fishermen; once again we 
felt it was an honour for the Viking to stand by them 
to help, if help were needed. Captain Frederick G. 
Bird, R.N., was in charge of the drifter divisions, and 
Commander G. W. C. Venn, R.N.R., his second in 
command. 

After all had withdrawn, since I had been directed to 
attend on the Lord Clive (flag), I closed her, and was 
sent on ahead to find a certain light buoy which marked 
the end of a channel through our minefields. 

We steamed the requisite course and distance, and 
then finding no buoy I stopped and anchored. It was 
almost dark by this time, and having failed to find the 
buoy, which I concluded had been sunk, I turned a strong 
light towards the slowly following squadron, and, copy- 
ing the characteristics of the light on the buoy, I hoped 
to be sighted by the monitors and made use of. I 
could not use wireless, which might have given our posi- 
tions away. We were sighted about 1 1 p.m., and then 
we weighed and continued until the Kentish Knock light 
was sighted, when the Admiral boarded my ship and 
returned full speed to Dover. The monitors went 
back to their hiding-place to await some fresh laid 
scheme. 

A fortnight later, we re-appeared on the Belgian 
coast with something that we anticipated would out-hun 
the Hun. We had spent the intervening time in practis- 
ing making smoke screens and in perfecting the gunnery 
practice of a monitor mounting two really modern 15- 
inch guns. 

This ship was the Marshal Ney, and she was a curi- 
ous-looking floating fort of 6,679 tons, propelled by 



KEEPING THE SEAS 63 

Diesel engines. There were difficulties in getting these 
engines to work, difficulties that led the Marshall Ney 
into trouble again and again. 

On September 20th we carried out some good bom- 
barding work, our spotting being done by shore observa- 
tion stations and also by kite balloons. The forenoon 
work was not very exciting, but it was good to see the 
huge 15-inch guns of the Marshal Ney cocked up sky- 
wards, belching their cordite smoke into the skies. None 
of the enemy's shells hit the bombarding squadron, and 
we had it our own way until the afternoon, when the 
Marshal Ney went close inshore and moved up to La 
Panne. There is a narrow passage leading from off La 
Panne into the West Deep. To assist the Marshal Ney 
I worked through this passage in the Viking, hoisting 
small flags on either side, which told the monitor the 
depth in feet. She got into position and commenced the 
bombardment, when suddenly she became unmanageable, 
for her engines broke down, and she commenced to drift 
ashore. The enemy got her range, and shell after shell 
whistled through the air and plunked into the sea along- 
side her. There was nothing to be done to stop the Mar- 
shal Ney drifting ashore, unless she dropped her anchor; 
this she did, and we in the V iking made a beautiful 
smoke screen which effectually hid her from view; then 
under cover of this black screen we steamed quickly 
alongside, took a towing wire on board and gently mov- 
ing ahead the Viking turned the Marshal Ney's bow 
westward, and with the most delicate increases of speed, 
got her going towards Dunkirk. It is interesting to note 
in this connection that the huge monitor was of such 
shallow draught that, once we got her going, she towed 
quite easily, and when we were steaming revolutions 



64 KEEPING THE SEAS 

for twelve knots in the Viking, we were towing the 
monitor along at eight knots. 

Apparently the Attentive became anxious on our ac- 
count and we received a W.T. message asking " Where 
is Viking? " I replied, " We are towing Marshal Ney 
back to Dunkirk." 

My sub-lieutenant, who was on board the Attentive, 
heard my reply read out, and witnessed the mirth oc- 
casioned, but when the jeers had subdued, the sub- 
lieutenant looked out of a scuttle and saw the Viking 
towing the Marshal Ney past the Attentive. He ran up 
on deck, to see better and signalled with his hands, 
" They don't believe it." The first lieutenant sema- 
phored back, "Tell the monkeys to look out of their cage 
at the zebra and giraffe." I thought it was rather a good 
reply, for the Viking was now painted in a coat of striped 
camouflage, and the Marshal Ney, with a single huge 
tripod mast towering above us, had an awkward, giraffe- 
like appearance. To put it in plain English, the Marshal 
Ney was a dead failure, thanks to her Diesel engines. 

Once more the Marshal Ney cocked up her guns to 
bombard, but one of her engines broke down and she 
became unmanageable; her captain dare not stop her 
other engine on account of the starting difficulties, and 
so she slowly turned circles until the Admiral, thoroughly 
disgusted with her and her Diesel engines, ordered me 
to take her in tow. The Viking repeated the effort of 
the previous day, and my dainty little destroyer led the 
great unmanageable monster out of action like a very 
small boy leading a broken-down cab horse away to the 
slaughterhouse. The Marshal Ney was now officially 
recognised as being a failure, and she was returned to her 
dockyard, disarmed and given some lighter gwns. She 



KEEPING THE SEAS 6s 

afterwards was used as a floating fort in the Downs. On 
September 21st, we carried out another bombardment 
from the West Deep and we employed sea-planes, kite 
b«J 1r >ons and the shore observation stations for spotting 
with three '"dependent sets of observers. The spotting 
was as good as Oil? could wish for in those days. 

Other bombardmeii were undertaken with more or 
less success by the 12-inch monitors this season, but none 
I believe succeeded as well as that of August 23rd, 
when we were credited with having inflicted the follow- 
ing damage : — 

Two dredges sunk, 
Two submarines sunk, 
One factory partly destroyed, 
Solvey factory destroyed. 
First lock (ecluse) destroyed. 

What effect our bombardment had on the morale of 
the German troops can only be gathered by taking 
notice of the extent of the enemy-adopted counter- 
measures. In these days when peace is close at hand, 
one cannot walk anywhere on the Belgian coast without 
coming across a continuous barrage of barbed wire en- 
tanglements and a perfect chain of heavy gun batteries 
and defences. The batteries are in some cases boldly 
dated 19 15, so that it is evident the Germans " had the 
wind up," and were not at all happy about attacks from 
the sea. 

Of the stunts undertaken to worry, annoy and puzzle 
our enemies, perhaps the most amusing took place in 
September, 19 15, when I was sent by Admiral Bacon 
to give a firework display at Ostend. The whole story 
is rather comic, but it was one of those operations or 
rather tricks that can only be played once. 

The Admiral had received an intimation that the 
5 



66 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Commander-in-Chief of our armies in France wished us 
to do all we could to keep the German troops on the 
coast, presumably in ordler that they could not be 
utilised at the time of our Western Front attacks. 

The Admiral considered that it would b^ '^advisable 
to risk destroyers over the German m'.\chelds, of which 
the existence, but not the position, was known. He 
accordingly gave me two oil-burning torpedo boats of 
the class known as the " Oily Wads." These were with- 
drawn from the Downs, where they were used as a 
patrol for the protection of shipping, and handed over 
for the occasion. Brackets were fitted along both sides 
of the boats to hold socket distress signals, and a large 
supply of rockets was taken on board. 

A programme for the organised firework display was 
drawn up and the crews of the tiny vessels given a 
dummy run at their firework stations. The boats pro- 
ceeded in the afternoon by the northward route over to 
the North Hinder light vessel, and thence to the Middle- 
kerke Bank. 

The night was very dark, but calm, and everything 
was in readiness for immediate action in case we met 
enemy patrol vessels, or a submarine entering or leaving 
Ostend near the time of high water. We worked closer 
and closer towards Ostende until it appeared impossible 
for us to escape detection; searchlights were working on 
the coast, slowly sweeping to and fro, and star shells 
could be seen to the southward flickering in the sky. 
They were evidently fired at certain definite intervals. 

We had decided that it would be unsafe to remain off 
the port after 2 a.m., when the tide would have fallen 
sufficiently to make navigation over minefields a fool- 
hardy business. We hoped most earnestly to run across 



KEEPING THE SEAS 67 

a submarine, for she would not have been very ready 
to dive when trimmed for navigating near the Ostend 
Banks; and had we met one, it would have meant her 
certain destruction. 

About 1 a.m., when all eyes were accustomed to the 
darkness, what appeared to be the conning tower of a 
submarine, suddenly presented itself almost dead ahead 
of the leading torpedo boat; engines were put at full 
speed, a touch was given to the helm and we had almost 
rammed the supposed enemy vessel when a dismal howl 
arose, a second before the foremost 12-pounder gun 
had been laid on the object. Those on the bridge real- 
ised that, instead of a submarine, we were attacking 
one of the whistle buoys which mark the Belgian coast 
sandbanks. The helm was quickly put over to avoid a 
collision and the boat astern of us warned. The buoy 
passed along our port side, almost touching the frail 
torpedo boat. Everybody burst out laughing, our sup- 
posed enemy gave another dismal groan, and that was 
all our submarine hunt yielded for the night. 

The time passed very quickly and, at 1.50 a.m., not 
daring to remain any longer over this mined area, I blew 
the pre-arranged signal on a whistle, and then another 
blast. From the two torpedo boats three bouquets of 
rockets, port fires, Very's lights and star bombs ascended ; 
the display was repeated after a minute's interval, and 
the absurdity of the situation made me laugh until I 
nearly fell into the sea. What the Germans thought, I 
never heard until I met some of those who had been at 
Ostend all through the war. Comparing the dates, one 
realised that the enemy had been seriously alarmed and 
preparations made for repelling a landing. 

We were very proud of that firework display, and I 



68 KEEPING THE SEAS 

am sure that the Germans, who so little understand the 
English, would have sent out any available craft to 
destroy us had they known that two feeble little vessels 
were so close to the shores they occupied; it was almost 
possible to knock a hole in these with a good fisherman's 
boathook. To those in the torpedo boats the evening's 
" stunt " was merely a joy ride. 

We turned northward at 2 a.m. and steamed away 
into the darkness. Suddenly, however, the whole coast 
line was illuminated, and it appears that many star-shells 
were fired out to sea. The second boat signalled 
' Regret can only keep up 13 knots." This was not 
much good to us because we naturally imagined that 
the enemy would send out what they had to attack us 
when they saw our two small torpedo boats. The 
armament of the squadron consisted only of four 12- 
pounder guns and six 14-inch torpedo tubes. I reduced 
speed to keep in company with our boat, and then a 
pathetic signal blinked forth from the shaded signal 
lamp of the boat astern — the signalman spelt out, "We 
are being followed by four large ships." 

There was nothing for it except to turn round and 
attack, for we could not run away at 13 knots, and I 
did not propose to leave my companion ship. We 
commenced to turn round in order to begin the engage- 
ment, hoping to sink or damage one ship at least, but 
realising that we had very little chance, when our com- 
panion again signalled, and we made out " Annul my 
signal, they are only lights on Ostend pier." I confess 
I was very relieved, for we had no speed in those boats 
with which to manoeuvre and we could have been run 
down by any kind of modern destroyer. 

My sub-lieutenant from the Viking, who had gone 



KEEPING THE SEAS 69 

with me, asked if I wanted to make any further 
signal. I laughed and replied, " Yes, make T.G." 
The sub-lieutenant said, " What do you mean, 
sir?" I said "Thank God," and off we toddled 
homewards. 

We were back in Dover again long before people were 
awake; the torpedo boats were completed with oil fuel 
preparatory to returning to the Downs patrol, and 
nobody watching us bathing in Dover Harbour from the 
Viking realised that we had had a night out. I doubt 
if anybody but the Vice-Admiral even knew of our 
escapade. These little parties were welcomed by de- 
stroyer officers as departures from the dull routine pa- 
trolling, and later, when destroyers were fitted as mine- 
layers, they became very frequent occurrences. 

In the first three years of the war, the only casualty 
that ever occurred to the Dover torpedo craft, during 
coastal reconnaissances, took place on May 7th, 191 5, 
when the Maori and the Crusader were sent along the 
Belgian coast to sketch some of the land marks. The 
Maori unfortunately struck a mine and was in a sinking 
condition when her crew took to their boats. The 
Crusader could not approach her on account of mines, 
but sent two boats' crews to her assistance. Before the 
Maori actually sank, her Captain, Commander Ben- 
jamin Barrow, destroyed all confidential books and 
memoranda, lest they should subsequently be recovered 
by divers and be of use to the enemy. 

Unfortunately, the loss of the Maori was witnessed 
from the enemy positions, and whenever the Crusader 
approached near the boats which were pulling out to 
meet her, she was heavily fired upon. The Captain of 
the Maori signalled to her to keep away as he did not 



7 o KEEPING THE SEAS 

wish us to lose another destroyer by mine or gun-fire, 
for the sake of a handful of men. 

The Crusader carried only a few seamen on account 
of her small armament, and when her boats were away, 
she stood off and on, hoping the Maori's could pull to 
seaward until they were out of range. It was an un- 
fortunate situation, because when the two ships origin- 
ally worked up the coast, the visibility was only about 
two miles. After the Maori struck the mine, the 
morning mists rolled away and the visibility became so 
good that it really was foolhardy for the Crusader to 
remain close to the shore batteries. 

An enemy armed trawler eventually came out and 
took the boats' crews prisoners. These were the only 
officers and men from the Dover Patrol who fell into the 
hands of the enemy during the three and a half years 
I served in this command. 

I can hardly close this chapter without a word about 
two of the Dover naval officers who worked ashore in 
connection with the bombardments and other naval 
efforts in our Patrol. The first is Commander 
W. G. H. Bickford, who was the principal officer in 
connection with Admiral Bacon's spotting tripod 
schemes. 

Bickford had left the Navy some time before the 
war, but like most others, appeared at the outbreak of 
hostilities and offered his services in whatever capacity 
they might be found useful. Bickford was discovered 
by Admiral Bacon, who watched him unloading 15-inch 
howitzers and other heavy artillery in the Port of Havre. 
The light-hearted way in which he overcame all the 
difficulties of unloading, commended him to Admiral 
Bacon's notice as a " Handy Billy," he knowing no 



KEEPING THE SEAS 71 

French and his French labourers knowing no other 
language than their own. 

I remember on September 7th, 19 15, Commander 
Bickford was taken on board the Viking after he had 
been left on his spotting tripod for fourteen hours, 
when the bombarding squadron had withdrawn on ac- 
count of mist. 

He was to have had a little dinghy with him and an 
attendant drifter. Owing to other duties being assigned 
to the drifter, Bickford was left perched on his tripod 
with two signalmen; the tripod sank a little into the 
sand, and the tide rising, came to within nine inches of 
the top and it looked as if our friend would have to 
choose between a several thousand yards swim to Ostend, 
or a porpoise-like chase after the various ships that 
Admiral Bacon had, whose whereabouts he knew not. 
Apart from these discomforts, Bickford's weight, some- 
thing over fifteen stone, caused him further unhappiness, 
sitting as he did on the grating-like top of his observa- 
tion tower, and when eventually he was rescued and 
taken on board the Viking, a kind-hearted lieutenant 
asked him if he would not sit down; he replied, " Sit 
down ! I don't care if I never sit down in my life again. 
I have a patchwork pattern on my quarterdeck from 
which I shall never recover." 

We got him some refreshment on that occasion, and, 
as he had had no chance to sleep for thirty hours, I took 
him to my cabin, and told him to turn in. I then went 
in search of a brandy and soda, for he had been badly 
shaken when the Huns blew the top off his tripod. 
Armed with a drink, I returned to my cabin and, to my 
consternation and amusement, I found old Billy arrayed 
in my pyjamas; his measurement amidships was pro- 



72 KEEPING THE SEAS 

bably more than double mine. The pyjamas would not 
button up, nor would they tie up and for all the world, 
he looked like a bit of raw beef wrapped in butter mus- 
lin. Bickford was one of the Dover D.S.O.'s, and we 
all appreciated the fact that he thoroughly deserved it 

Lieut. D. G. G. Shoppey is another officer whose serv- 
ices were a valuable auxiliary to the Dover bombarding 
forces, and one who should also be mentioned here. 
Shoppey was landed from the Amazon in September, 
19 14, when the Germans made their first push along the 
coast of Flanders. He originally landed to establish and 
maintain communications between the military and naval 
forces, and was accompanied by a party of Marines 
with the machine guns from one of the small monitors. 
This party was subsequently annihilated, but Shoppey 
escaped and joined the Staff of Colonel Bridges, who 
was then in charge of the Belgian Military Mission. 

Shoppey became our principal observer during bom- 
bardments, and, although a very young officer, his 
judgment was remarkable. He was full of energy and 
zeal; no sooner was he shelled out of one observation 
post than he would remove himself to another with the 
greatest possible sang froid. He had observation posts 
at Templar's Tower, the Cafe de l'Yser, the Station 
Hotel and Ramscapelle, among other places in and 
around Nieuport. It was to Shoppey that we were 
indebted for establishing our wireless communications 
and our visual signalling posts. He had only a very 
small staff of signalmen, who were as zealous as Shop- 
pey himself. 

Before finally saying good-bye to the tripod spotting 
arrangements, which were superseded by other devices, 
I once heard a distinguished official ask Admiral Bacon 
whom he got to sit on the tripod; his reply was " Oh! 




TWELVE-INCH GUNS MOUNTED IN IMITATION BARN NEAR 
ADINKERQUE, BY COMMANDER BICKFORD. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 73 

they are retired officers." In connection with these 
retired officers I heard a story, though it did not happen 
in the Dover Patrol. It is well known that many retired 
admirals joined the Naval Reserve as temporary com- 
manders, for service with yachts and other vessels in 
the Auxiliary Patrol. One of these officers, distin- 
guished in many wars before he retired, had come to re- 
port at the headquarters of a certain senior naval officer, 
who had a Royal Marine Light Infantry man for or- 
derly. The senior naval officer was very busy, but the 
temporary R.N.R. commander was very pressing, and 
he continually urged the orderly to inform the S.N.O. 
of his presence, in spite of being informed that this 
officer was engaged on very important business. 

At last the marine yielded and said he would do his 
best. He knocked at the S.N.O.'s door, walked in, and 
risked the scowls of his superior, " There is an officer 
whom I think you ought to see," said the marine. " I 
can see no one now," replied the S.N.O. " Well, I 
think you ought to see this one," urged the marine. 
" He is one of them there disrated admirals, and he 
has medal ribbons like a rainbow on his chest. I think 
you ought to see him, sir," and the S.N.O. gave way. 



CHAPTER VII 

Escort Work, a Second Winter and a Bit of 
Salvage 

The second winter set in rather more severely than the 
first winter of the war; the monitors did an occasional 
shoot, but spent most of their time at anchor, and since 
destroyers were not required to work in conjunction with 
them, we returned to our patrolling and escort work. 

The transports did wonderfully well. Running be- 
tween Folkestone and Boulogne in fog, gale or calm, 
they stuck to their high speed and time-table punctuality, 
and we in the destroyers stuck rigidly to the transports. 
Hundreds of little close-packed khaki figures were 
jambed into each transport; how uncomfortable and 
unsheltered they looked ! In the winter, spray dashed 
over the fast-running cross-channel steamers and, in 
spite of the wind screens rigged both sides of their 
decks, the soldiers often got wet through, and one could 
not help feeling that these men, who were going out to 
fight, would prefer to do so rather than stand on the 
draughty decks, to be soused in the sticky showers of 
cold, salt water. 

The transport captains were the best hearted, cheeri- 
est men one could wish for, their only anxiety being to do 
their utmost to help win the war. They certainly made 
good, and the seasoned merchant seamen and firemen 
who worked the vessels acquitted themselves admirably. 

74 



KEEPING THE SEAS 75 

It was a pleasure to watch the transports handled by 
their commanders and, out of probably more than ten 
thousand crossings, they had but a couple of collisions, 
as far as I can remember. This speaks volumes for the 
careful and skilful way in which they were handled, for 
it must be remembered that they frequently navigated 
at 20 knots, without lights and with other vessels in 
close company. I think the Leven and Cossack collided 
with transports, but I never heard of the transports 
being in collision with one another. 

On the occasion of the Leven' s collision, I was out on 
night patrol in the Viking. It was on a dreadfully dark, 
wintry night, when we intercepted a plaintive little 
wireless message concerning the collision. The escort 
vessels had gone to the assistance of the troop transport, 
which, in her heavily-laden condition, would naturally 
require attention with her valuable human cargo of two 
thousand British soldiers. We moved away from the 
patrol line to succour which ever ship needed help; and 
on arriving at the scene of the accident, I was soon 
satisfied that the troop transport needed no help from 
the Viking. I then turned my attention to the Leven, 
now two or three miles away. I discovered her at last, 
and, switching on my searchlight, I found before me a 
most pathetic sight. The bow of this old-fashioned 
destroyer appeared to be flattened out of all recognition. 
She was drifting broadside to the swell, rolling about in 
the troughs of the waves in a manner calculated to make 
even an onlooker sea-sick. We worked the Viking close 
to her, and to windward, and then pumped oil overboard 
until there was a chance of getting close alongside. Once 
communication was established, I found that the Leven 
could not steam ahead, owing to the serious nature of 



76 KEEPING THE SEAS 

the damage. The wind was from the westward, and 
we were unpleasantly close to the French coast, south of 
Boulogne. After a megaphone conversation with her 
captain, whom I had brought up as a " Sub," I decided 
to tow the injured destroyer stern first. We soon got 
hold and moved her away from the coast. However, 
the tow parted in the seaway, and while the Tartar 
stood by us, I got my ship alongside the Leven, and 
being protected by large hazelwood fenders, which I had 
" accidently " possessed myself of, I got thoroughly well 
secured to the Leven, with all our hawsers and theirs. 

Lieut. E. J. B. Shouler, my No. i, was a perfect glut- 
ton for salvage and towing, and a perfect genius for 
equalising the strain and distributing the pull. Thanks 
to his perfect seamanship, we held on to the Leven 
through the night, and by daybreak we had got under 
the lee of the Kentish coast, the wind having veered to 
the N.W. Once in the neighbourhood of Dover, the pow- 
erful tug, Lady Crundell, came to our assistance, and 
giving us a stout hawser to our bow, she manoeuvred the 
pair of us safely to a buoy in Dover Harbour, where we 
found calm water and had time to study the Leven's 
damage. It was certainly pretty bad. 

Connected with the foregoing incident, I must set 
down a short history, which had a humourous side as 
well as a gruesome one. 

When the collision occurred, a poor fellow was severe- 
ly injured through the collapse of the Leven's bow. 
After we had got our towing hawsers secured, we heard 
about the injured man, and I sent my coxswain down to 
ask if everything possible was being done for him. The 
coxswain returned and informed me of the man's pitiful 
condition. I sent out a W.T. signal to Cossack, asking 



KEEPING THE SEAS 77 

for the services of her surgeon probationer; the Cossack 

approached and the young man boarded us with some 

difficulty, in the bad weather. After the surgeon had 

had time to make an examination, I sent my coxswain 

down to report what was being done for the injured 

man, and the following dialogue took place : — 

Captain. Is the man very bad? 

Coxswain. Yes sir, 'is legs is all jambed up and broke. 

Captain. Go down and tell the doctor to put him on 
a stretcher and get him into my cabin, if he can 
arrange to get from one ship to the other — wait for 
a lull. 

Coxswain. (After descending from bridge to give 
message). I give the doctor the message, 'e says 'e 
daren't move the man jus' yet. But sir, you don't 
want 'im in that cabin of yours, 'es, all blood and 'e'd 
muck up the sheets frightful. 

Captain. Never mind, you get the poor man down 
there, we can easily get new sheets later on when we 
are safely in harbour. 

Coxswain. (Shaking his head, obviously unwilling). 
Aye, aye, sir. 

(Five minutes later) — 

Coxswain. The doctor says 'es too bad to be moved, 
but 'e thanks you all the same. 

Captain. Can nothing be done for him? 

Coxswain. No, sir. Why the bones of 'is legs is stick- 
ing right out through 'is flesh. 

Captain. Good God! 

Coxswain. Oh, you have no call to worry, sir, that's 
alright. Why 'E's only one of them there ullages 
that's joined up for the war. 



78 KEEPING THE SEAS 

This was the coxswain's tender way of setting my 
mind at rest. 

I was very angry with him at the time, but I sub- 
sequently learnt that he was one of the most generous 
and kind-hearted of men. He was relieved in the 
Viking by C.P.O. Williamson, who was for a year 
boatswain of Captain Scott's exploring ship, the Terra 
Nova. Williamson was a great friend of mine, and one 
day, when I told him of his hard-hearted predecessor, 
he expressed surprise and told me how very good the 
other coxswain had been to all the younger ones, whom 
he had classed as " Them there ullages what's joined 
up for the war." 

In December, 191 5, while I was taking my turn with 
the Dunkirk Destroyer Division, a transport steamer, 
the Southgarth, full of trench material, bound for Dun- 
kirk, ran past the port during the night, and, after 
passing over a great portion of the Traepegeer Bank, 
stranded near the buoy marking the north part of the 
shoal. She was abandoned by her crew about the 13th 
December, when, the weather being moderately fine, 
German aeroplanes came out to investigate. One of 
these flying machines arrived whilst a portion of the 
Southgarth' s crew were in a boat quite close to her, and 
an apprentice, seeing the aeroplane flying low, pointed a 
small pistol at it. In reply, the aeroplane opened fire 
with her machine gun, without, however, hitting anyone. 

The Commodore, Dunkirk, on being informed of the 
Southgarth grounding, moved out in the Attentive and 
took charge of the vessels at his disposal, with the idea 
of salving the grounded transport. The weather was too 
bad to do any salvage work on December 13th, so a 
destroyer patrol was kept in the West Deep to prevent 



KEEPING THE SEAS 79 

enemy interference. On the 14th, the weather was 
again fine enough for aeroplanes to work, and they came 
out from Ostend and dropped bombs all around us. A 
few shots were also fired by German batteries at the 
Southgarth, without doing any damage. One of the 
hostile aeroplanes dropped a line of great bombs close 
to, and parallel with the Viking, and one of our stokers, 
a New Zealand man named Williams, having watched 
the whole business, waved his hand and shouted out 
" That's right, Cooey, one for each funnel; if you wasn't 
so cock-eyed and so cocksure." Just after this another 
aeroplane appeared and we prepared to shoot at her with 
our only anti-aircraft defence, a couple of old-pattern 
maxims, but recognising her as friendly, we desisted. She 
flew at our late attacker and, after a sharp little fight, sent 
her down in flames to the sea. Several small craft made 
for the spot, but the enemy aeroplane disappeared. 

Almost immediately afterward, down came our own 
machine close to the spot, and it sank in a couple of 
minutes. One of the mine-sweepers near by fortunately 
saved the pilot and observer, and they were none the 
worse for their cold bath. They turned out to be Flight 
Lieutenant Graham and Flight Sub-Lieutenant Ince of 
the Royal Naval Air Service. 

After losing a machine, the Germans desisted from 
any further bombing. We waited again in the West 
Deep, expecting the tug Conqueror and a smaller vessel, 
the Goole X, to make an attempt to tow the Southgarth 
off, but they were so long approaching her that I sig- 
nalled to the Commodore on the Attentive asking his 
permission to attempt to salve the ship. He signalled 
back to me, " Certainly," and afterward signalled, 
f Viking take charge of salvage operations." 



80 KEEPING THE SEAS 

A boat was lowered from the Attentive and an at- 
tempt was made to board the Southgarth, but in the 
rough sea and strong tide this boat was carried away to- 
ward the Belgian coast, and I ordered H.M.S. Syren to 
stand toward her and tow her back, with a view to an- 
other attempt being made to board the vessel. 

Eventually the boat reached her, and some of the 
Attentive* s men and a few of the Sonthgarth's crew 
were able to get on board. The Viking approached the 
Southgarth and discharged large quantities of oil near 
her, in order to assist the boat. The weather now 
moderated again, and at about 4 o'clock in the after- 
noon I put my ship alongside and made fast with every 
available hawser. 

In addition to my own hawsers, the Attentive men 
on board the Southgarth, directed by the master of the 
ship, passed us several large hawsers from the South- 
garth herself, which were secured so as to hold the 
Viking alongside. When we had secured and equalised 
the hawsers from my ship to the Southgarth, I went 
ahead at the top of high water and, to my great joy, at 
last got the Southgarth to move. Once we had got into 
the West Deep, two tugs approached, and one of them 
assisted me to tow. 

We in the Viking were as proud as peacocks when we 
returned to Dunkirk with our salvaged prize, and we 
received a signal of congratulation from the Commo- 
dore when we anchored the steamer off Dunkirk pier, 
and handed her back to her crew. 

As far as I was concerned, the incident was closed. 
Some time afterwards I heard that a claim for several 
thousands of pounds was being made by the master of 
one of the tugs for salving the Southgarth. I have now 



KEEPING THE SEAS 81 

received a letter asking me to be witness at the trial 
wherein the master of the Conqueror claims on the 
owner of the Southgarth for the salving of the vessel. I 
wonder what he will say when he sees me in the court. 

The incidents that marked the second year most were, 
as far as the Dover Patrols were concerned, the losses 
due to enemy mine-laying from submarines. 

In December, 191 5, I exchanged the command of the 
Viking for the Crusader, it being a convenient arrange- 
ment for Commander Williams, the Crusader' 's skipper, 
as well as myself. 

I had had rather more than my share of running in 
19 1 5, and as I was constantly getting migraine, Staff- 
Surgeon Louis Greig, our medical officer in the parent 
ship, recommended to our Captain (D) that I should 
have a rest; and since the Crusader had boiler troubles, 
and her captain wanted to get back to the patrol, we ex- 
changed commands by agreement. 

It was an unlucky change for Williams and a lucky 
one for me. Only a week after my successor had taken 
over the Viking she struck a mine off Boulogne and her 
stern was blown off. The accident took place about the 
end of January, 19 16; the officers were at lunch and all 
lost their lives, with the exception of the gunner, who 
was on watch at the time. This was a severe blow to 
me, for the Viking's officers had had a very hard year 
with me and I had grown to know them as friends who 
counted. The tiny little wardroom had become quite 
dear to us, and we had met there so often to plan, dis- 
cuss and work, as well as to sing and play. It was in 
the wardroom of the Viking that I first learned to fox- 
trot of all things, and of all places to learn in. 

I was spared the sorrow of seeing the Viking spoilt by 
6 



82 KEEPING THE SEAS 

a German mine, but so many have told me how the oil 
fuel caught fire and, spreading itself over the sea as it 
ran from her, flamed away horribly, with my poor dear 
loyal sailors dying before help could arrive. 

I lost many friends that day, including a great Her- 
cules named Stowe, who had just received the Distin- 
guished Service Medal for his good work in my ship. 

Sailors are great believers in mascots. I always car- 
ried a toy penguin at my masthead, and I think my 
successor had sent it away on the Viking's unlucky day. 
Poor little Viking! She was repaired and rebuilt, but 
she has never quite recovered her speed, nor her former 
shape. Connected with the foregoing disaster, my 
late coxswain, Chief Petty Officer Williamson, was in 
a storeroom when the mine exploded; all with him 
were killed outright, but Williamson was blown up the 
little hatch and into the sea. He sustained severe con- 
cussion of the brain but, in spite of being unconscious, 
he swam about for 40 minutes before being picked up; 
he fortunately was wearing a life-saving waistcoat to 
which he undoubtedly owes his life. 

I took over command of the Crusader in January, 
19 1 6, and found a delightfully efficient ship, with keen, 
able officers. The first lieutenant evidently considered 
that my appearance would bring good luck, and observ- 
ing that the Mohawk and Viking had both struck mines 
within a very short time after I had left them, he sug- 
gested that they should nail me down once I was settled 
on board. 

The Crusader was one of " White's " ships, built at 
Cowes, like the Mohawk, but she was an improvement 
in every way, being one of the latest of the Tribals. 

I may say that her ship's company were typical of 



KEEPING THE SEAS 83 

the " new navy." They were always clean and they 
seemed to take such a delight in putting on their uni- 
form properly, giving no trouble, keeping guns and tor- 
pedo tubes in tip-top working order and so forth, that I 
concluded that the only really vile thing in the Crusader 
was myself. 

Apart from striking mines, the Dover destroyers spent 
a good deal of time in dodging these things, and we 
were fairly successful. We had frequent opportunities 
of sinking them by rifle and gun fire, when floating 
mines were met with on patrol. I remember sinking 
forty-two in one afternoon, with the Viking and Cos- 
sack; it seemed a dreadful waste of money, but war is 
an expensive luxury after all. 

One of my Dover destroyers — I forget whether 
Viking or Crusader — was one day conveying a highly- 
placed official across the channel; he had received a 
K.C.B. and a K.C.V.O. for his services. Most officers 
of the Dover sea-keeping flotilla considered that he 
ought to have been put in prison for these same services, 
but we didn't decide these things. He had aired his 
opinions very freely on the destroyer's bridge, and he 
certainly was a good sailor, for it was blowing very 
hard and he wasn't sick. 

Suddenly a horned mine was sighted, bobbing and 
squirming like the head of one of Heath Robinson's 
imagination sea-serpents. The destroyer was proceeding 
at full speed and there was no time to stop, for we had 
to be at Dunkirk for other duty at a specified time. 
Orders were given to train and fire the foremost 4-inch 
gun at the mine en passant. The gun-layer swung the 
gun round, gave a few turns to the elevating wheel and 
fired; the shell struck the bobbing mine, and the con- 



84 KEEPING THE SEAS 

sequent explosion even shook our superior friend, the 
highly-placed official. He opined that it was a wonder- 
ful shot. " Well, you didn't expect him to miss it? " 
I replied, and then even the highly-placed official began 
to realise that in our poor, old Navy, people really knew 
their job, whilst I, delighted at the fluke, realised that 
the penguin on the masthead had given a lucky flap in 
time to hit first shot for the honour of the Navy ! 

The saddest of all the incidents in our Dover area was 
the loss of the hospital ship Angl'ia. She was mined 
between Dover and Folkestone; a small merchant ship, 
curiously enough another Lusitania, stood to her assist- 
ance with splendid pluck and attempted to save life. 
One of the Dover torpedo boats and H.M.S. Ure came 
along as well. The Lusitania also struck a mine, un- 
fortunately, and sank almost at the same time as the 
hospital ship. The wounded and survivors of the two 
vessels were picked up in a frightful condition, too 
dreadful to dwell upon. The hospital ship was certainly 
not torpedoed, although her loss made one feel vindic- 
tive, to say the least of it. 

The torpedoing of the Sussex, full of passengers, was 
a crime committed in our area of patrol. Lieut.-Com- 
mander Percival, in H.M.S. Afridi, was responsible 
for a fine bit of life-saving work here, for he intercepted 
a signal to the effect that the Sussex was sinking. He 
dashed to her position with Afridi, then placed his ship 
right alongside and rescued all he could find. Recently 
I met one of the survivors, an American, who told me 
that the way the Afridi was handled excited the utmost 
admiration and enthusiasm amongst those who waited 
to be taken off. 

A P. & O. steamer, the Maloja, was mined and sunk 



KEEPING THE SEAS 85 

off Dover, simultaneously with four other vessels, in the 
space of only an hour, and mine-sweeping now became 
a very important duty in the Dover Patrol. Area after 
area was declared dangerous and our charts of Dover 
Straits were a sight for sore eyes; circles were drawn 
all over them with "Dangerous owing to mines"; 
where there were no circles, one generally found there 
the little symbols employed by navigators to denote 
wrecks. From the Thames entrance to Beachy Head, 
the whole traffic had to be marshalled into " lanes," 
which were marked by buoys and wreck-marking vessels, 
whilst trawlers were employed all along the route to 
guide vessels passing up and down channel. The traffic 
routes were patrolled by destroyers, and very few losses 
were experienced from torpedoing, for the enemy con- 
fined their offensive operations to mine-laying, for the 
most part. 

The mine-sweeping flotilla increased to a great num- 
ber of vessels. They swept at all states of the tide, ex- 
cept where areas were known to be dangerous. 

Our loyal wit, the author of "Nubian Nonsense," 
included the following verse in his poem, " The Laws 
of Patrolling." 

"When you are warned off a spot that is dangerous, 

And all traffic from there's being kept, 
If you want to go through it, don't panic, 

It's the only place round that's been swept." 

He very pithily expresses the situation for 1916, as 
far as the destroyer officers' sentiments were concerned. 

The Germans were very clever in their placing of 
the mines, but under Admiral Bacon's direction, a traffic 
route organisation was perfected, which succeeded so 
admirably that, after a comparatively short time, 



86 KEEPING THE SEAS 

navigation in our part of the channel was almost quite 
safe for merchant vessels and other ships making the 
passage, provided they stuck to the traffic routes pre- 
scribed, and complied with the orders issued regard- 
ing the hours before and after high water, between 
which navigation was authorised. 

As Admiral Bacon said in his despatch of May 29th, 
1 9 1 6 : — 

" The same factors that impeded offensive action, 
owing to gales of wind and bad weather on the Belgian 
coast, facilitated the work of the enemy in laying mines 
and in attacking our commerce in the narrow waters of 
Dover Straits, since it assisted them to elude our patrols 
of protective vessels." 

The following extract from the same despatch is worth 
reading, and what we destroyer folk were most proud of 
was the paragraph that stated that not one single sol- 
dier's life was lost when crossing the channel hereabouts : 

"The services of the Dover Patrol can be best ap- 
preciated from the following facts: — 

"Over 21,000 merchant ships, apart from men-of- 
war and auxiliaries, have passed through this patrol in 
the last six months. Of these twenty-one have been lost 
or have been seriously damaged by the enemy. The 
losses in merchant vessels, therefore, have been less 
than one per thousand. On the other hand, to effect this 
very considerable security to our merchant shipping I 
regret that over 4 per cent, of our patrol vessels have 
been sunk and the lives of 77 officers and men lost to 
the nation. No figures could emphasize more thor- 
oughly the sacrifice made by the personnel of the Patrol 
and the relative immunity ensured to the commerce of 
their country. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 87 

" Besides the foregoing the Patrol assists in the pro- 
tection of the flank of all the sea transport to and from 
our Army in France. The number of vessels that have 
passed and also of the troops that have been carried 
are known to their Lordships, but it is well to call at- 
tention to the fact that this vast transport of troops has 
been so thoroughly safeguarded that not one single life 
has been lost during the sea passage. 

The work of the destroyer flotilla throughout the 
winter has been incessant and arduous and thoroughly 
well carried out. 

Certain opportunities have arisen of bombarding 
the enemy's positions in Belgium. On these occasions 
the necessary minor operations have been carried out." 



CHAPTER VIII 

" Fred Karno's " Navy and the Belgian Barrage 

" I take this opportunity to express my most 
" cordial thanks for the assistance which you have so 
" freely given to me in the joint operations which 
" have been carried out. Although at the present time 
" it is not possible to estimate the full effect of the 
" action which you have taken, and the results may 
" never be completely known, I am convinced that the 
" success of the attack carried out by the Armies under 
" my command on the 15th September, derived con- 
" siderable assistance from your co-operation." 

Extract from letter from Commander-in-Chief of British 
Armies in France. 

Distributed to H.M. commands and vessels concerned. 

In the spring of 19 16, an entirely new scheme of 
patrolling and offensive mine-laying was adopted by the 
Admiral of the Dover Patrol, and the subsequent change 
in our work resulted in a less strenuous summer for 
everybody concerned. 

The number of vessels in the patrol had now swollen 
to such an extent, and the types of ships presented so 
many variations of size, shape and character, that an 
officer commanding one of our destroyers christened us 

88 




THE HEROINE — QUEEN OF THE BELGIANS. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 89 

" Fred Karno's Navy." The name was quite appro- 
priate. Fred Karno, I imagine, was Admiral Bacon, 
and he certainly made good use of the material at his 
disposal; I never heard that he complained to the 
Admiralty that he could not compete with the situation 
owing to lack of material and inferior armaments; he 
made the best use out of what was supplied to him 
and certainly had the absolute confidence of his officers 
and men. 

The epoch written about in this chapter includes the 
summer and autumn of 19 16. It found Admiral Bacon 
in possession of an even more extraordinary collection 
of ships than his predecessor, Admiral Hood, had at 
his disposal in 19 14. 

At this time, we had light cruisers, destroyers, tor- 
pedo boats, submarines, armed trawlers, drifters, motor- 
boats and launches, converted yachts, mine-sweepers and 
mine-layers, transports and hospital ships, lighters, 
boarding steamers, patrol boats, rafts, colliers and oilers, 
monitors of at least three different types, gunboats and 
what not, all dependent and inter-dependent on one 
another, like a gigantic, floating jig-saw puzzle. 

We likewise had several types of different war-vessels 
flying the French flag, and then we had seaplane-carriers 
and a collection of aeroplanes and other flying craft, with 
a huge steamer, in which we kept our kite balloons, to 
complete this strange naval assortment; and whilst I 
dwell on such details of our composite flotilla, it would 
be well to say a word about the floating population of 
swashbucklers who manned these divers craft. 

Commencing with the Admiral himself, I will say that 
he was the cleverest man I have ever met and probably 
the hardest worker. It is fair to say that many of the 



90 KEEPING THE SEAS 

schemes he perfected never came to anything because he 
was not given the chance to carry them out. One great 
scheme, the landing on the Belgian coast, was stopped 
at the last moment because our army plans were altered 
and the military landing party was not available. 

Another scheme he had, of blocking Ostend, was 
nipped in the bud because the soldiers asked that it 
should be, in order that Ostend would be available as a 
base port, provided our Army captured this part of the 
Belgian coast in 19 15, as they imagined they would. 

Admiral Bacon was the only man I ever feared, but 
fortunately, he never really found me out, and I had 
the honour of serving as his flag captain eventually. 

His officers consisted of gunnery, torpedo and sub- 
marine officers with very expert knowledge. We had 
trawler skippers and deck hands from Hull, the Ork- 
neys and Shetlands, men who in cases could hardly write 
their names, but as I have said elsewhere, men with 
the " habit of the sea." We had learned professors, 
holding commissions in the motor-boat section of the 
R.N.V.R., and we had, hand in hand with them, the 
rag-tag and bobtail of the new navy which sprang up 
during the war, side by side with the new army that 
so thoroughly and successfully gnawed at the heart of 
the Boche until he broke down and collapsed. 

We had also captains of ocean liners in quite sub- 
ordinate positions and we had Royal Naval Reserve 
officers commanding destroyers, trawlers, or sections of 
drifters, and commanding them finely too. The little 
old-world town of Dover changed during these last five 
years like Klondyke in the '97 rush. 

Our air service people in the Dover Patrol turned out 
some famous aviators, who did magnificent work spot- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 91 

ting for bombardments, attacking air raiders and bomb- 
ing the enemy on the Belgian coast, until his life was a 
perfect hell. Brigadier-General Lambe was our local 
air service chief, and he very firmly insisted that for 
air raids to be successful, they must persistently continue 
to attack the same targets. 

As we found from our own experience, nobody cared 
a tinker's curse for a casual bombing raid on us, but we 
did care when we saw poor old Dunkirk get mercilessly 
bombed for fifty nights out of sixty. 

With this collection of material and personnel, we 
practically moved out of Dover for the summer and 
autumn months. On April 23rd, a number of large 
mine-layers, carrying hundreds of mines and escorted by 
several divisions of modern destroyers from Harwich, 
moved over to a rendezvous off the Belgian coast, where 
the Dover forces met them at dawn. 

Admiral Bacon and his staff were on board the 
Crusader, which ship I am glad to say the Admiral had 
set apart for his own use during the forthcoming opera- 
tions. I was particularly glad to have this opportunity 
of carrying him about again, because I learnt a great 
deal from my chief and from his flag captain. 

Having satisfied himself that all his force were as- 
sembled and that our own mine-sweepers had swept a 
broad channel along the lines on which the mines were 
to be placed, a stately Orient liner and a beautifully 
graceful steamer formerly belonging to the Canadian 
Pacific Railway, steamed with their escorts parallel to 
the Belgian coast, within sight of Ostend and Zee- 
brugge, and laid their mines without any interference 
from the shore batteries. 

With the assistance of other mine-layers, many thou- 



92 KEEPING THE SEAS 

sands of mines were laid on a barrage which extended 
from the banks off Nieuport to the outer Ratel Shoal 
and thence to the E.N.E. ward for twenty miles or so 
before bending to the south and east, until it reached the 
shoal banks again; thus making it dangerous for enemy 
submarines to approach the Belgian coast ports unless 
they took the route close to the Dutch shore, within 
territorial limits. 

To the northward of this mine barrage, a number of 
ordinary navigating buoys were placed by one of the 
Trinity House steamers, under the direction of Com- 
mander J. S. G. Fraser, and between these buoys and 
the mines laid by the large liners, a continuous line of 
mine nets, dangerous for craft navigating on the surface, 
was placed. The barrage was practically formed in a 
day, and from that time destroyers patrolled it. The 
light craft steaming up and down at 15 knots used the 
large monitors for rallying points, in case of attack by 
superior forces, and a daily sweep was carried out by 
six paddle-wheel steamers, who were usually guarded 
by a small monitor armed with one large gun. 

I believe I am correct in saying that the large mine- 
layers did their work in the early morning of April 24th, 
while the mine nets were placed during the ensuing day. 
The weather was reasonably clear, and during the fore- 
noon a naval review was held along the barrage to sea- 
ward. Commodore Tyrwhitt arrived on the scene about 
10 a.m. with his light cruisers and a number of powerful 
modern destroyers from the Harwich striking force. 
The day turned out beautifully fine, and one experienced 
a thrill of pleasurable pride at the sight of this perfectly 
manoeuvred flotilla, steaming at high speed up and down 
in full view of our Belgian friends ashore. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 93 

I know now, after living a little while in Ostend, that 
spectators who from their housetops could make out the 
line of grey hulls on the horizon smiled superciliously at 
the German soldiers whom they met on the Digue. The 
Belgians had by this time got to know how terribly the 
oppressor feared a naval attack or a landing on the 
coast. 

A number of modern German destroyers were now 
assembled at Ostend and Zeebrugge and, on the first day 
of the barrage patrol, the division of destroyers working 
along the N.E. half of the mine line came into contact 
with the enemy. Commander G. L. D. Gibbs, who 
had originally commanded the Crusader, was in charge 
of three " M " class destroyers, when several enemy 
torpedo craft dashed at the drifters who were placing 
the mine nets. Before they could do any damage to the 
little vessels, Gibbs and his companion boats swept down 
on to the enemy and a short, sharp skirmish took place. 
The Germans took to flight, running right in under the 
shelter of the shore guns; our destroyers pursued them, 
using a small gap in the barrage to get through to the 
attack. We heard that the whole coast line was a blaze 
of flashes, for the enemy were not proposing to allow our 
torpedo craft to come into short range by day. 

One of our vessels was hit by a small shell, which 
unfortunately exploded in her engine-room, putting her 
out of action. She was, however, towed away and sub- 
sequently docked at Dunkirk. 

Captain Wigram, of the monitor Prince Eugene, 
watched this little scrap with keen delight. He told me 
our destroyers were splendid. Gibb's three vessels were 
as already stated, " M " class, armed with three 4-inch 
guns and two pairs of 21 -inch torpedo tubes. These 



94 KEEPING THE SEAS 

vessels were much superior to the Tribals, but although 
their guns were better and more modern, they had a 
shorter range than those which the larger of the Dover 
boats were armed with, on account of the low elevation 
possible with the " M " boats' guns. 

The patrol of the Belgian coast barrage was continued 
for more than six months. There were, of course, oc- 
casions when, owing to bad weather, it could not be 
maintained. It was not always kept up throughout the 
night, but since the hours of darkness were very short 
during these six months, it is doubtful whether the 
enemy ever molested the barrage. 

Of the total Belgian coast watching period, we found 
it impossible to maintain the patrol on about 17% of the 
days, which is not a very large proportion when one 
considers that the meteorological conditions of the 
Belgian coast are very similar to those of the English 
shore. Taking it all round, we had a very pleasant 
summer. The night work was chilly, but the days were 
usually mild enough to make life enjoyable. The 
Germans afforded us plenty of amusement by their 
promiscuous shelling, occasional " dot and carry one " 
attacks by destroyers if they happened to come across 
us in very inferior numbers, and we also had a moderate 
amount of excitement from the air. 

The enemy flying machines had by this time learnt to 
appreciate that destroyers were difficult to hit, and they 
gave up molesting us, although the slow moving moni- 
tors afforded them a more tempting bait, which they 
occasionally bit at. 

Sunday afternoon was the favourite time for the 
aeroplanes to drop their bombs, especially on ships in 
harbour. There was a good deal of sense in this, for 



KEEPING THE SEAS 95 

Sunday was Sunday to us, even in war, and those who 
worked their hardest during the week, were apt to relax 
a bit on the Sabbath. 

One beautiful Sunday, I brought General Sir William 
Robertson over to Dunkirk, and berthed my ship along- 
side the monitor Marshal Soult. When the General had 
landed, accompanied by Admiral Bacon, I had lunch 
with Captain Paton on board his monitor. After lunch 
I stood on the gangway of the Marshal Soult for a few 
seconds, wondering whether I should go and see my 
friends on the other monitors there. I reflected, how- 
ever, that being Sunday afternoon, those who had no 
duties would either be getting some exercise, or if they 
were too tired, " taking a stretch off the land." 

I saw an aeroplane appearing and disappearing in the 
rather low-lying clouds, and, never dreaming that it was 
a Hun, stepped on board my vessel and went down to 
my cabin. I had no sooner gone below than I heard 
some heavy banging, which I took to be the breaking of 
the wire hawsers which secured us to the monitor. It 
was low tide, and any destroyer coming into the harbour 
at speed would easily have caused the hawsers to carry 
away. I ran up on deck to set things right when, to my 
dismay, I realised that a line of bombs had been 
dropped, some of which had reached their mark. 

The first bomb dropped alongside the Crusader, ex- 
ploded and did some insignificant damage to us. The 
next one hit the Marshal Soult on her thick steel deck, 
which was bomb-proof, and this unfortunately exploded 
just where I had been standing. It killed five men 
and wounded many others. Most of the casualties oc- 
curred to my ship's company, who had been out on 
to the sands near Dunkirk to collect cockles, of which 



96 KEEPING THE SEAS 

they were very fond. This bomb had exploded right 
among the cockle party. The deck of the monitor was 
in a frightful mess of mangled bodies. We did what we 
could for the wounded, one of whom shook his fist at 
the departing aeroplane and exclaimed, " We will get 
you yet." He certainly was a true prophet, for later 
that afternoon I heard this same aeroplane had been 
chased down and destroyed by Flight Sub-Lieutenant 
Goble, who brought the enemy machine to action and 
sent it in flames crashing down to its own aerodrome. 

Another of the bombs from this machine struck the 
Marshal Soult on one of her bulges, where it exploded, 
tearing a big hole. The fourth and fifth bombs fell on 
to the quay, amongst a crowd of motor transport drivers 
and French soldiers, but, wonderful to relate, only three 
or four were injured. 

It took us but a couple of days to settle down to the 
Belgian barrage patrol. routine. We kept the regular 
patrol from dawn till dusk, and occasionally we would 
be called in to our anchorage off Dunkirk at odd times, 
in order to tempt German above-water craft out. At 
the end of April it was light enough to work from 4 a.m. 
until 8 p.m., which meant 16 hours daily on the patrol 
line proper; add to this the time we took from our 
anchorage to the north-east end of the outer Ratel Shoal, 
a matter of 15 miles, and the time returning in the 
evening, and it will be seen that the monitors were forced 
to be under weigh daily for 20 hours out of the 24. The 
destroyers often shortened the time down to about 18 
hours, on account of their speed; in the long run, how- 
ever, there was nothing much to choose, because we 
made occasional night reconnaissances with destroyers, 
which equalled up the average of hours under weigh. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 97 

We got so used to the sight of the daily barrage pro- 
cession, which usually consisted of some large monitors 
creeping to the north-eastward, accompanied by a small 
anti-submarine escort of two or three thirty-knotters; 
a little distance off, the graceful grey shapes of the 
"Dover surf deer" sped out to scout ahead of the 
heavier craft, while the long, rather straggling line of 
little drifters puffed and snorted along on their way to 
tend the mine-nets; the mine-sweepers, in three pairs, 
swept ahead of the weird flotilla, with their attendant 
little monitors armed with their long-range guns. 
These small monitors were not much use for bom- 
barding, this work being better carried out by the large 
12-inch and 15-inch vessels, which have already been 
described, but the little monitors helped us very much 
in defending the long line of auxiliary craft which was 
always employed on the barrage line, repairing the mine- 
nets, weighing buoys, and carrying out the manifold 
duties for which they were sent out. 

Once the patrolling flotilla was established on the 
barrage line, every opportunity was taken of doing a 
friendly shoot, but it must always be remembered that 
our forces were not, like the Huns, able to plaster towns 
the size of Ostend say with large shells; we had certain 
specified targets which boiled down to known gun po- 
sitions and the harbour works, and we had to remem- 
ber that we had friends in Ostend. The greater part of 
the time spent on the barrage reduced itself to dull 
patrol work. 

The Dover family were certainly a happy lot, and the 
most junior lieutenant in command would not hesitate 
to send a cheeky signal to one of the monitor captains if 
an opportunity were given him. 

7 



98 KEEPING THE SEAS 

The senior officers of destroyers invariably took a 
delight in passing close to the slow going monitors and 
hoisting such signals as " Course W.S.W. speed 25 
knots." If the patrol was returning, this meant that 
we got back to our anchorage some hours before the 
monitors, and it used invariably to bring forth a rude 
signal, for the monitor captains were our seniors. 

Captain Collard, commanding Lord Clive, in par- 
ticular, took it all very quietly and one day when I 
passed him, knowing he was about to proceed on leave, 
I wished him a good time. He replied by semaphore, 
" I am going to the Zoo for my leave and I propose to 
spend my time watching the tortoises crawl." I think 
Collard had thought of the only creature that moved 
more slowly than a monitor. 

As the season progressed, the monitors, from various 
causes, began to lose speed, or rather to go more slowly, 
for their customary sluggish movement forward could 
hardly be called " speed." The Marshal Soult at one 
time was not capable of doing more than four knots, 
and on another occasion the Prince Rupert and Prince 
Eugene were caught in a westerly gale against which 
they could make no progress whatever. Their captains 
wisely anchored and, their holding gear being good, they 
were able to ride out the storm with the assistance of 
their engines, which they constantly kept going. To the 
destroyers who stood by them, it looked at one time as 
though the Prince Rupert and Prince Eugene would be 
carried stern first up the river Scheldt. 

The Admiral continued to use the Crusader whenever 
he went afloat, which was very often this year, for not 
only was our flag officer constantly on the patrol line, but 
he spent a great deal of time away from Dover, mount- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 99 

ing heavy naval ordnance for straffing purposes, in vari- 
ous shore gun emplacements, as will be seen a little later. 

On account of the use made of the Crusader by Ad- 
miral Bacon, she came to be known as the " taxi-cab." 
A destroyer's accommodation and messing arrangements 
are hardly suitable for a Vice-Admiral, and our chief 
generally slept on board the monitor Marshal Soalt; he 
and his staff usually had their meals there also, and in 
consequence of this the Soult was christened the 
" restaurant." 

Early one morning I rather impudently signalled to 
Captain Paton, whilst passing him in the Crusader, 
" Taxicab to restaurant, submit, good-morning. I can't 
see any Huns." The reply came back immediately, 
" From Marshal Soult to taxicab. Go away. I didn't 
blow the whistle." 

On another occasion, when the Crusader, flying the 
Admiral's flag, was dashing by the Prince Rupert, the 
Admiral had gone down to the chart room to get some 
breakfast, and very wrongly I made the following sig- 
nal, " What speed are you doing? " The reply came 
back, " 5.8 knots "; to which I made the further reply, 
" Put on another shovelful." 

Captain Reinold, of the Prince Rupert, knew per- 
fectly well that the Vice-Admiral would not descend to 
such childish frivolity, and he shook his great fist at me, 
perched up in his position under the monitor's tripod 
mast; I knew there would be a rough and tumble the 
next time that we met. 

All this variety of patrol developed in us a sort of 
" rat-catcher " wit, and although the great amount of 
sea time that we did prevented us from studying the 
scientific side of our profession, and becoming conversant 
with the technique of the new types of vessels, we 



ioo KEEPING THE SEAS 

certainly got into the habit of using our craft to the 
greatest advantage, confident that behind us the best 
brains of the Navy were perfecting inventions, plans 
and schemes for helping us, who, as it were, constantly 
held the front line trenches. 

New-comers generally made a few blunders to begin 
with, although there were exceptions. In wireless sig- 
nalling one could almost tell by the signal the new hand 
from the old fox. For instance, we received from a 
certain destroyer a wireless signal as follows — " Am 
sinking. German mine." The gentleman in question 
was merely firing with rifles at a German mine, and when 
his would-be rescuers arrived and found him doing so, 
he was quite hurt because they turned their searchlights 
on to him and signalled in unison, "B.F., B.F., B.F." 

Our poet, Lieut.-Commander Hallett, includes this 
incident in his "Laws of Patrolling," as follows: — 

"When you see a horned object that's floating, 
And you've got all your rifles in line, 

Please don't make a wireless signal 

Am sinking, full stop, German mine." 

"If you sink it or burst it, just say so, 

That certainly cannot do harm, 
But to make the above stupid signal, 

Causes panic and useless alarm." 

Commander H. G. L. Oliphant, of the Amazon, was 
one of the first Dover vessel commanders to fight a de- 
stroyer action. Returning after the patrol had with- 
drawn from the eastern extreme of the barrage, he came 
across a number of enemy destroyers, stopped and lined 
up ready for him. H.O. was delighted and he sped into 
action against them. The enemy fired a number of sal- 
voes, which were carefully controlled, without, however, 
inflicting any damage on our own destroyers. As 



KEEPING THE SEAS 101 

Oliphant said afterwards, " Their firing was so magnifi- 
cent that they did not get a hit." He did not mean this 
sarcastically, for the enemy salvoes always fell very 
close, but were either just short or just over their 
target. The calibration of their guns had certainly been 
well carried out. Nevertheless, the Tribals never 
brought them to close action, for when it was seen that 
our T.B.D.'s meant close fighting, the enemy, working 
a smoke screen, withdrew inshore again and could not 
be followed without Oliphant's squadron crossing the 
mined-nets. 

The enemy destroyers carried three 4.1-inch low 
trajectory guns, which were vastly superior to the wobbly 
old things we had in the Tribals. This was recognised 
by the powers that be. However, it was pointed out 
to us that it did not matter since we had the monitors to 
fall back upon by day time; all the same, we were not 
particularly anxious to fall back on the monitors, and 
we longed for something faster and better armed, which 
would give us a chance at long range, since there was 
obviously little chance of a respectable, close, slogging 
match. 

I happened to be in charge of three English and one 
French destroyer, one morning early, when we had gone 
well ahead of the out-coming monitor patrol. We saw 
smoke to the eastward and soon after encountered a large 
number of enemy vessels, with their infinitely superior 
armament. We could not possibly have put up any 
kind of fight against them, and the only thing to do was 
to bluff them and fall back. Accordingly, without at- 
tempting to run away, I fired my foremost 4-inch gun 
at a range of 12,000 yards, and the enemy, who had got 
our range, was certainly perplexed. Our guns were 
really only sighted up to 10,000, and a greater range 



102 KEEPING THE SEAS 

could not be put on because the guns would not elevate 
further. I obtained the elevation for the extra 2,000 
by running my ship's company from side to side until 
we had got a considerable roll on the ship — then, by 
firing at the maximum upward roll, a large increase of 
range was obtained. This range was probably as great 
as the German destroyers could get on their 4.1-inch 
guns at that time, so they retreated to Ostend and 
Zeebrugge; for which I was exceedingly thankful — I 
did not think we were fast enough to have got away 
from them. Some days later, with a similar small 
division, I again encountered the German destroyers, 
but a minefield lay between the opposing forces, which 
we were both aware of, and so only a long range fight 
could have taken place. I was about to open fire in the 
previous primitive fashion when, suddenly, five very 
large German destroyers, steaming slowly towards us, 
commenced firing salvoes. They had got our range to 
a nicety and the shots were all straddling us. The 
second of my destroyers, the Amazon, was hit on her 
mast and it was obvious to me that not only were we out- 
matched, but outranged this time, so I turned my di- 
vision away three points together; a number of salvoes 
fell just short when we turned, and then the enemy, 
seeing us apparently running away, put up their sights 
by 500 yards or so and their salvoes then went over; 
they evidently expected me to go away full speed, be- 
cause several salvoes fell well beyond. Not getting 
any hits, they then came down about 800 or 1,000 yards 
and once again fell short; all very splendid in its way, 
but the moment they came down, I hauled down my 
signal to proceed at full speed, and my four little ships 
sped away before the Germans knew what we had done. 
They were unable to pursue us directly, owing to the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



103 



minefield, but approached as near as they dared; we 
lay comfortably out of range and counted them, made 
our report by wireless, and then closed as near as we 
could without coming again into range, turned to the 
westward, and straight towards five innocent looking 
craft in the distance; these were our mine-sweepers and 
one small monitor with a 7.5 gun. We led the Germans 
towards this nondescript flotilla and suddenly the small 
monitor opened fire at about 13,000 yards; she was 
fortunate in obtaining a hit, which upset the Hun 
flotilla, and we had the laugh of them for the second 
time. Later in the day they came again to chase my 
division, but by this time we had big monitors to fall 
back on and very nearly entrapped them. I am sorry 
that the big monitors did not secure any hits with their 
12-inch guns, as the Germans had now become more cau- 
tious, and made a smoke screen to hide behind. Not- 
withstanding, we had got the only effective hit with the 
7.5-inch gun, which must have done a good deal of dam- 
age on that lightly constructed German torpedo craft. 
The strength of the patrol was considerably varied, 
for instance, on the 4th May we had the following ships 
on the barrage : — 



Flotilla Leader 



New Destroyers 



"L." Class .. 

French Destroyer . . 
Dover Destroyer . . 

Monitors 

Submarines (Night only) 



Sivifl 

Meteor 

Mastiff 

Minos 

Myngs 

Murray 

Milne 
) Lysander 
\ Leonidas 

Aventurier 

Zulu 
S Lord Cli-ve 
\ General Crauf 
SVA 
\ C.34 . . 



Dover 
Harwich 



Dover 



ord 



io 4 KEEPING THE SEAS 

while on June 2nd, we had the rather obsolete light 
cruiser Attentive, and Crusader, Nubian, Afridi, Cos- 
sack, Tartar, Leven, Crane, Greyhound, and monitors 
General Wolfe, General Crauford, small monitor, M.27. 

The effective guns of the destroyers on the first date 
were thirty-three 4-inch, while on the latter date we had 
only six 4-inch and a number of little 12-pounders. It 
didn't matter how much we varied the patrol, for the 
Germans never quite knew what force would be out. 

On June 1st the Attentive picked up the pilot and 
observer of an English aeroplane after eight hours in the 
water. On the same date our mine-sweepers were at- 
tacked by aircraft. One of our destroyers signalled, 
" How many babies have you killed lately," to the air- 
craft. A faint reply came back, "Pigs! Swine! 
Cowards!" I am told. 

On June 8th, when only the Dover destroyers were 
out, my ship, the Crusader, sighted three enemy de- 
stroyers six miles distant. They opened fire at long 
range, and we found that our fire was useless; though 
our own vessels were reached, the only damage was the 
mast of a destroyer splintered. Monitor M.25 was 
coming up astern and she soon got into action, the third 
round fired was very close if not a hit; M.25 fired 24 
rounds altogether, but the enemy destroyers made 
smoke screens behind which they retired. It was no- 
ticed that the enemy always turned with the flash of 
the monitor's gun. 

This day the large monitors again opened fire on the 
three German torpedo boat destroyers at 18,000 yards 
range, but it is unlikely that any hits were obtained, 
for the target vessels were only occasionally visible 
through their smoke screen. 




THE KING AND QUEEN OF THE BELGIANS WITH THE EARL 

OF ATHLONE AND ADMIRAL BACON ON BOARD 

ONE OF THE DOVER DESTROYERS. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 105 

At 10.30 a.m. enemy vessels appeared in force, and 
steamed up and down parallel to our old-fashioned di- 
vision of Tribals, but keeping well back from the bar- 
rage and out of the monitors' range. The Admiral 
came out in a thirty-knotter, transferred to the Crusader, 
and took charge. I think this was merely a return naval 
review by the Huns, but there was no real fight that day. 
Unfortunately, when the Lord Cltve had fired early she 
had a premature explosion, and I regret to say several 
pieces of shell struck the French destroyer Aventurier, 
wounding several men. 

On July 15th, when the drifters were out replacing 
broken sections of mine nets, they found the dead body 
of a German in naval uniform, which came up when 
hauling in — an added piece of evidence that the mine- 
nets were fulfilling their functions. This evidence was 
pleasing because we destroyer people had little faith in 
English mines of any kind. We picked up more German 
naval men's bodies on the 19th, near the net line. 

On the 1 8th July, two divisions of five enemy de- 
stroyers of modern type were engaged by Cleopatra, a 
Harwich light cruiser and the Prince Eugene, but no 
evidence was forthcoming as to damage inflicted, al- 
though the Eugene appeared to hit once, with a 12-inch 
shell. 

The Germans were now beginning to make more use 
of their destroyers, and, as far as we could make out 
they kept about 15 modern torpedo-boat destroyers at 
their Belgian coast bases, together with some vessels of 
a smaller type, including the little " A " boats, which 
were not of much account; whenever these latter came 
into action they appear to have met with disaster. 



106 KEEPING THE SEAS 

One night a torpedo craft attack was made upon the 
little French patrol boats which guarded the approaches 
to Dunkirk Roads from the eastward. After a spirited 
little fight, when a great number of rounds were fired 
at the French boats by the enemy, an opportunity pre- 
sented itself to one of our allied friends to let go a 
torpedo; this he did, at very close range, and his target 
vessel blew up. I believe she was a torpedo boat of 
the " T " Class. 

The French destroyers working with us this year were 
the Francis Gamier, Aventnrier and Intrepide. 

They were all useful for the knock-about work on the 
Belgian coast, but, like our own earlier type vessels, their 
armaments were not sufficiently modern to be useful in 
anything but close fighting, which, as I said before, 
was denied to us this year, except for the encounter 
between the small French patrol boats and the small 
force of German light torpedo craft. 

Much as I dislike the Germans, I must say they did 
not waste their ships in useless attacks, but kept them 
as a force in being, ready to strike at our shipping in 

the Downs, to bombard Dunkirk or to make those oc- 

* 
casional " tip and run " raids with which we later be- 
came familiar. 

It was always a wonder to us that a destroyer attack 
was never made on the shipping in the Downs, but the 
presence of the Dover vessels in the vicinity of Dunkirk 
undoubtedly kept this from taking place. A captured 
German officer explained a good deal about the German 
destroyer tactics. He said that the reason they so 
seldom risked their ships in night fighting or action at 
close range was because they dare not have them in- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 107 

jured; the only facilities for repairing torpedo craft were 
at Bruges, and even there extensive damage to torpedo 
craft was very difficult to make good. 

As far as comparison went, the " G's," " S's " and 
" V's," or later classes of German destroyers, carried 
three 4.1 -inch guns and six torpedo tubes; this armament 
compared to our poor old Tribals, with two guns and 
two old-fashioned tubes, put our vessels rather to shame, 
and we cannot lay claim to damaging any of the enemy 
boats considerably with the Dover destroyers un- 
til our flotilla was strengthened with later pattern 
craft. 

Whether the Belgian coast mine barrage was respon- 
sible for the destruction of many German submarines, 
it is difficult to say. The evidence is strong enough in 
support of its efficiency, for one may fairly assume that 
a submarine has been destroyed when a huge explosion 
takes place, after which the body of a uniformed Ger- 
man sailor is picked up, and when on searching the 
body, one finds a pass made out in German to go ashore 
at Bruges. The evidence is circumstantial enough to 
be accepted in favour of a " U " boat's destruction. 
This sort of thing happened several times, but at the 
same time, mines exploded for other reasons, and if 
every explosion reported meant a submarine downed, 
we should have sunk all the German submarines sev- 
eral times over. 

In 19 1 6 enemy submarines did not make much use 
of the Dover Straits, but went north about to do their 
dirty work. 

As far as mines were concerned, the Germans were 
much ahead of us at this time; their mines were really 



io8 KEEPING THE SEAS 

dangerous, while ours, whatever their merits when in 
position, possessed the great fault that they broke adrift 
too easily and were often to be found drifting on the 
surface, fortunately innocuous. We did not seem to 
have appreciated the difficulties of keeping mines 
moored in the strong tides and rough seas of Dover 
Straits and the Belgian coast. Later on, our mines be- 
came just as dangerous as the Germans'. 

The Belgian barrage patrol continued until the end of 
October, after which the greater part of the destroyers 
were withdrawn to patrol Dover Straits during the 
long hours of winter darkness, when submarines and 
above water craft had a better chance of stealing close 
to our own coast. We also had by now perfected our 
barrage from the Goodwin Sands to the Snouw Bank 
with mines and mine-nets, which were more efficient than 
those used earlier on. 

Our good-bye to Dunkirk and the Belgian barrage 
was always rather a sad one for it took us further from 
the fighting, and we no longer could hear the guns of 
the opposing armies, which kept the warlike instinct 
alive in us; the Belgian barrage was infinitely more in- 
teresting with its occasional excitements, bombardments 
and skirmishes, than the long night patrols off Dover in 
heavy weather, when sheets of icy spray used to break 
over our bridges and decks and froze us until our fight- 
ing instincts were numbed and our only pleasure con- 
sisted in hot brews of cocoa and tea to keep body and 
soul together. 

November saw us all on the Dover patrol line again, 
how we hated it ! Fortunately the destroyer captains 
continued as a band of brothers who pardoned one 



KEEPING THE SEAS 109 

another's shortcomings and realised that the biggest 
bounce made the best man. 

The following verses from the " Laws of Patrolling " 
will give a little colour to the end of this chapter, and 
will also give a few glimpses of our winter work. We 
had our fun on the Belgian coast to look back upon, and 
another Belgian coast to look forward to, for those 
who survived the winter. 



''Now these are the laws of patrolling, 
And novices please take the hint, 

If you carry them out you'll do better 

Than by doing what's already in print. 

If the boat you relieve on patrol line 
Is ordered an escort at noon, 
Don't slip from your buoy at eleven, 
You'll only get out there too soon. 

If you find yourself close to the entrance 

In fog or in mist or in rain, 
Take permission to enter as granted, 

Get inside where the guns cannot train. 

When you're sent down to Folkstone for escort, 
And a transport is leaving at eight, 

It's quite normal to be there at midnight, 
For a transport will always be late. 

When you get to a buoy from patrol line, 
And it's blowing and pouring with rain, 

Don't be silly and put on two bridles, 
Or you'll soon have to go out again. 

When a submarine's sighted off Beachy, 
And Destroyers are ordered to slip, 

Don't be in too much of a hurry, 

'Twill be cancelled, just take my tip. 

Or perhaps to Boulogne for the leave boat, 
You're sent to be there at night fall, 

Don't be angry or rattled at daylight 

When you're told the boat won't leave at all. 



no KEEPING THE SEAS 



If a trawler won't answer the challenge, 
Don't sink him before you ask why, 

For he's perfectly certain to tell you 

That's he's never been told the reply. 



If you're tired of patrolling and escort 

And you're fed to the teeth with your work 

Just pray for a refit or stand off, 

Or a fortnight detached at Dunkirk." 

''Nubian Nonsense. 



CHAPTER IX 

A Third Winter and H.M.S. " Brokk " 

On October 27th, 19 16, a German destroyer flotilla 
from the Flanders coast made a night raid on the Dover 
Strait. My ship was refitting at Portsmouth and un- 
fortunately missed this stunt, and so I cannot describe it 
as an eye-witness. The enemy sank the poor little 20 
years old Flirt under the following circumstances : — 

On arriving in the Dover Strait the enemy attacked 
the drifters who were attending the mine nets and sank 
one or two of them. The Flirt arrived on the scene after 
the enemy destroyers had finished pounding the little 
fishing craft, which they had every right to do for the 
drifters were to all intents and purposes men-of-war. 

Finding some of the drifters' crews swimming about 
in the sea, the Flirt lowered a boat, which attempted to 
save life. While the boat with the first lieutenant was 
pulling about, looking for the drifters' crews, the Ger- 
man destroyers came back and riddled the Flirt with 
shell until she finally sank. The enemy flotilla evidently 
expected to cut off the transports which they imagined 
were carrying troops between Folkestone and Boulogne. 
Some of their destroyers came across the troop trans- 
port Queen, which they fired on heavily until she was in 
a sinking condition. No transports were being run 
across at night, which was fortunate for us. 

Ill 



ii2 KEEPING THE SEAS 

The destroyers in Dover, under the Amazon (Com- 
mander Harry Oliphant), dashed out of harbour and 
attacked the enemy, but neither side did much damage; 
there were some casualties on board the Amazon, who 
was struck once or twice, while some light damage was 
done to one of the other Tribals. 

The enemy made off, but coming across the Nubian, 
which had separated from the other torpedo craft, the 
Germans hotly engaged her. The Nubian attempted to 
ram one of the enemy destroyers, but unfortunately 
was hit with a torpedo before she brought off this 
coup. She did not, however, sink, for her commander 
ran her ashore under the South Foreland, from which 
position she was salved later in the war. 

We had nothing to crow about on account of this 
raid, for the enemy got off lightly. It was one of those 
cases when the luck was with the Germans. 

It was unfortunate that the Nubian did not bring off 
her ramming, as had she struck and sunk an enemy 
destroyer, it would have made up for the loss of the 
Queen and the Flirt. 

After this incident, the Dover Patrol was strength- 
ened by the addition of more modern destroyers per- 
manently, and the Straits patrol was re-organised to 
compete with raids of this kind. 

A rather grim humour is attached to the story of the 
Flirt's boat, which contained the only survivors of the 
unfortunate little ship. After the Flirt had been sunk, 
the boat's crew pulled out, looking in vain for their ship- 
mates, and whilst so engaged, an English destroyer 
came speeding along and dropped a depth charge near 
them, mistaking the boat for a submarine in the dark- 
ness. This fairly shook them up, but their adventures 



KEEPING THE SEAS 113 

were not all over, for an enemy submarine on the surface 
had a look at them and, I understand, also took them 
for a submarine and dived to escape destruction. 

We now adopted what was known as the dark night 
patrol. During the ten days or a fortnight of each 
month when there was no moon, the Dover destroyers 
were employed in two divisions to patrol the Straits with 
a view to competing with these destroyer raids. 

The concentration of destroyers meant better protec- 
tion against above water craft, but a lesser degree of 
vigilance against submarines. There was, of course, 
an outcry because enemy destroyers had been allowed to 
penetrate the Channel. I don't think anybody in Dover 
was ever very rattled on account of newspaper outcries; 
at the same time it would have been a very good thing 
if those who were doing the patrol work and facing the 
third winter, with its attendant strain and hardship, 
had been allowed to point out what they had to contend 
with, and to display their rotten collection of craft for 
comparison with the splendid vessels in other Admiral's 
commands. The eastern patrol division, which worked 
near the tail of the Ruytingen Shoal, was only a short 
two hours' run from Ostend, and the crews of their 
ships were called upon to exercise the greatest degree of 
vigilance and readiness, often for ten nights on end in 
the winter. By day they were employed on anti-sub- 
marine patrol work, when they were not oiling, or 
carrying officials across who were too proud to go over 
on troop transports. 

While I take off my hat to the efficient, patient, 
highly-trained body of officers and men who proudly 
served in the Grand Fleet, they had a gentleman's life 
compared to the Dover lot. My own South Polar train- 



ii4 KEEPING THE SEAS 

ing, which took me four voyages into the Antarctic 
seas, certainly had fitted me for work such as we were 
called upon to face on our patrol; I had my sleeping 
bag, into which I could crawl on the bridge, and a com- 
plete set of most beautiful warm Antarctic under-cloth- 
ing, which defied competition. But there were many in 
the Dover service who had been more carefully and 
gently brought up, and these people, I consider, put up 
no end of a good show. 

I felt a personal grievance against the loss of the 
Flirt; she had an R.N.R. Lieut.-Commander as captain 
and an R.N.R. first lieutenant, two of the nicest, cheeri- 
est beings one could possibly wish to see, and I had 
been once or twice on board for some purpose or other. 
There was nothing beautiful about the Flirt, except, 
perhaps, her name; she was just a dirty, pre-war type of 
destroyer of that kind which only burns coal and which 
seems to make a point of collecting cinders from her 
funnels on her bridge, in her boats, and in every con- 
ceivable corner of her much congested deck space. 
Down below, in her wardroom, especially in winter, 
there was not room to swing a cat, for the bunks all 
round were crowded with clothes, books and other gear, 
to permit chair room for the officers to take their meals 
or sit at their table. There was nothing in their sur- 
roundings to make these people cheerful, but no one 
could accuse them of being anything else. Forward, on 
the messdeck, the accommodation was even worse, but no 
one ever heard a moan; complaint was unknown to these 
men. The Flirt was a happy ship, but why she was de- 
signated ship, or what her over-worked, uncomfortable 
crew had to make them happy about, God only knows. 
There is no disputing the fact, however that she was 



KEEPING THE SEAS 115 

once His Majesty's Ship and she was happy, and what 
was more, after twenty years of bumping and buffeting 
about, she met a greatly superior force of the enemy and 
took them on, bravely firing her guns until she sank, for 
the honour of her country. Poor little Flirt! 

When we, in the Crusader, came back from our refit 
at Portsmouth, the day after this incident, we heard 
these things, and I for one made up my mind that I 
would try and pay off this account. I am glad to say 
I did so, a few months later on. 

We in Dover knew how hard it was to satisfy all 
demands, but this raid resulted in our getting some far 
more powerful destroyers, and a few days afterwards I 
received an appointment to command a destroyer,- or 
rather flotilla leader, that was perfectly fitted for night 
fighting. She fairly bristled with guns. 

I was sent up to Cammell Laird's yard to run the 
trials of H.M.S. Seymour and then, directly she was 
ready, to hand her over to the Grand Fleet. In return 
for her I was to obtain the battle-scarred Broke, which 
ship had been much hammered by the German warships 
in the Jutland Battle six months before. 

The Broke was to work with her sister vessels the 
Botha and Faulknor, in the Dover Strait. Each of these 
vessels carried six 4-inch guns and four 21-inch torpedo 
tubes, a vast improvement on the armament of our now 
very obsolete Tribals. 

I did not waste much time in getting clear of the 
Seymour, much as I would have liked to retain this beau- 
tiful, modern ship. I proceeded from Liverpool up the 
west coast of Scotland and thence to Scapa Flow, and 
from here, after getting instructions, I sped down to 
Invergordon, where I saw " my future home," a power- 



n6 KEEPING THE SEAS 

ful, and fairly new ship, but a dirty contrast to the beau- 
ful, oil-burning ship I had got from Cammel Laird's. 

In half a day I had turned over my crew, self and 
baggage, from the Seymour to the Broke. My old 
friend, Captain Gladstone, who had served in the Dover 
Patrol, relieved me in the Seymour, and then I took my 
new command at 20 knots down the east coast through 
the war channel to Lowestoft, where I had been ordered 
to stop to obtain my route instructions for the latter 
part of my voyage. This was the only glimpse I had 
of the North Sea during the war. 

Very proudly I berthed the Broke alongside the east- 
ern arm at Dover. My envious confreres flocked on 
board to see and decide before airing their opinions as 
to her fighting qualities. I had taken with me a few 
satellites from the Crusader, including the weather- 
beaten Petty Officer Smith, who had already won the 
D.S.M., when yeoman of signals to Admiral Hood. 
Smith was the coolest hand I ever met, and he knew all 
about everything concerning the Dover Patrol, its dis- 
position and signals. Smith, fortunately, was human, and 
he had two faults, he could not read morse or semaphore 
as well as other signalmen. Sometimes I got very impa- 
tient with him for this — not that it mattered to Smith. 

Of all things that surprised the Dover destroyer peo- 
ple most on board the Broke, was that we carried ten 
marines. Marines in a destroyer! They had never 
heard of such a thing. 

The Broke was certainly a comfortable ship, beautiful 
in a seaway, with splendid bridge accommodation, al- 
though, like the poor little Flirt, she had a habit of 
covering herself with cinders. She was originally built 
for the Chilian Navy, and had beautiful accommodation 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



117 



for the captain and " rotten quarters " for everyone 
else. She was "requisitioned before delivery" from 
the Chilian Government, under the 19 14 Emergency 
War Programme, when her name was changed from 
Almirante Goni. Her speed was 29 knots and her prin- 
cipal fuel was coal, but we had a method of squirting 
oil into her furnaces that gave us an extra turn of speed 
if required. 

One remarkable feature about this ship was the dis- 
position of her gun armament. We could fire four 
4-inch guns right ahead. 

I hardly expected Admiral Bacon to take on the 
Broke as his taxi-cab, but as a matter of fact he did, 
when there were any operations afoot, and also when 
the " Knuts " crossed over, if they were " Knuts " he 
fancied. 

It was a great change for the destroyer commanders to 
move into the flotilla leaders, of which we secured four 
in the Dover Patrol in the third year of the war, viz., 
the Swift, Broke, Botha and Fanlknor. Our destroyer 
patrol on January 1st, 19 17, consisted of the following 
vessels : — 



Attentive 


Greyhound 


Active 


Flirt 


Faulkner 


Mermaid 


Swift 


Leven 


Broke 


Faivn 


Afridi 


Kangaroo 


Amazon 


Syren 


Ghurka 


Myrmidon 


Viking 


Gipsy 


Crusader 


Racehorse 


Nubian 


Crane 


Zulu 


Fah on 


Cossack 


T.BA 


Tartar 


T.B.1S 


Mohawk 


T.B.2\ 


Saracen 


Lapwing 


Ure 


Phoenix 



Unity 
Porpoise 
Ambuscade 
Victor 
Paragon 

P.34 

P.17 

P.ll— 

P.12— 

P.19— 

P.21— 

P.24 — 
M.24 — 
M.25 
M.26 
M.27— 



• Patrol Boats 



Small Monitors 



n8 KEEPING THE SEAS 

The younger officers who had originally commanded 
the thirty-knotters had moved up into the Tribals, and 
the Tribal commanders had moved into " M " boats 
or flotilla leaders. 

I am afraid I always was, and always shall be, one of 
those who really hate the German and all his works. I 
did not always agree with my confreres in the patrol, 
and I certainly fell out for a moment with one of them 
who, on first visiting my new command, stated as his 
opinion that what we wanted was Prussianism in Eng- 
land. I told him that I was out to fight for that demo- 
cratic freedom that we in old England had been accus- 
tomed to, and I must say I brought up my men in the 
Broke to realise that, for however many winters the war 
continued, we must go on until the Germans were 
smashed, and until the Kaiser no longer controlled the 
destinies of a huge nation. 

To-day, when the history of the war is more or less 
public knowledge, one is able to form a pretty good 
opinion of the general characteristics of the belligerent 
nations. To-day, in Belgium, the name " German " 
is a by-word for all that is vile, for domination sought 
by brutality, espionage, treachery and underhand com- 
mercial tactics; no true Belgian will ever forget the 
Hun occupation. In this brave little country the people 
are disgusted with Germany, and they loathe her and 
all that the word " German " stands for. 

At the beginning of 19 17 the Germans realised that, 
although they were not beaten, they could get no further, 
also that they were held by us and our glorious, splendid 
allies; they must have felt when they looked into those 
grey, steadfast, fearless eyes, as they occasionally did 
when they got a handful of British prisoners, that the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 119 

game was up and that they would eventually be called 
upon to pay the price of outrage and atrocity. 

From the moment the Germans realised that they 
could not win, they entirely changed towards the people 
of Belgium, and treated them first with strictness, then 
almost with friendliness. 

People in Germany were beginnning to mistrust the 
" Eat 'em alive " group headed by Von Hindenburg, 
Ludendorf, and the fire-eating Crown Prince, and, in 
order to keep up the spirits of the populace, all kinds of 
little stunts were undertaken for propaganda purposes. 
The Germans would not risk another naval battle after 
Jutland, for their ships would only have been sunk had 
they afforded us another opportunity of meeting them 
in sea battle; they therefore appear to have used the 
best of their personnel in submarines, on which they 
pinned their faith. The unemployment of their battle 
fleet freed the light forces, and eventually a fair number 
of modern torpedo craft were based on the Flanders 
coast. Presumably the enemy gave us credit for 
strengthening the Dover Patrol after the raid on Oc- 
tober 27th. 

On the 1 8th March, 19 17, during the dark night 
period, some enemy destroyers crept up the Dover Strait 
barrage and, waiting for our patrols to approach and 
turn, the enemy were fortunate enough to torpedo and 
sink the Paragon, with no loss to themselves. It was a 
well-executed bit of work, and it proved that the enemy 
had not finished with the use of above-water craft in 
our area. 

Apparently the destroyers thought that they could 
now enter the Dover Strait with impunity, and therefore, 
on the night of the 20th April, only one month later, 



120 KEEPING THE SEAS 

when the weather was fine but the sky overcast and there 
was no moon, an attack was made by a flotilla or half 
flotilla of large destroyers on Dover and Calais. 

My ship, the Broke, was patrolling with H.M.S. 
Swift near the western end of the barrage. 

The night was so dark and the conditions so suitable 
for an attack, that I had passed the word round that 
the Germans would probably attempt to bombard 
Dover, in order to please their local "Daily Mail." This 
would be a fairly easy thing to do if they fired a few 
rounds and then left at full speed; the odds were on 
their getting away in the darkness. But in spite of these 
excellently favourable conditions, what took place sub- 
sequently proved to be quite a bold piece of work. 

As far as we have been able to make out, the enemy 
approached at moderate speed with six destroyers of a 
very modern type and, when about three miles from 
Dover, they carried out a very rapid bombardment. 
We in the Broke followed the Swift towards the gun 
flashes at full speed but, not coming across the enemy 
vessels, we returned to the eastern end of our patrol, 
hoping to prevent these destroyers from damaging the 
shipping in the Downs. The German vessels actually 
passed close to the eastward of the Goodwin Sands 
without being seen, and then, after steaming some little 
time to the north-eastward, they turned and came back 
again, evidently expecting to be joined by another lot 
of their destroyers. These, we subsequently learned, 
had bombarded Calais. 

Suddenly the Dover raiders were sighted by the Swift 
and ourselves in a position about seven miles east of 
Dover. The vessels were steaming quickly to the east- 
ward in line ahead; they immediately opened fire, which 




o 

H 
H 
O 

o 

3 
o 



O 



<; 

'J 
W 



KEEPING THE SEAS 121 

the Swift returned, firing her three guns as she passed 
down the line at full speed. Nothing could have suited 
us better than the situation on meeting, for although 
the comparison of numbers and armaments left us at 
a great disadvantage, the Broke's right-ahead fire of 
four 4-inch under easy control from the bridge, was 
more than equal to the broadside of any single German 
destroyer. 

Both ships converged towards the enemy, after the 
first exchange of rounds between our leader and the 
Germans, and then, to close them quickly, I altered 
course out of the wake of the Swift for a few seconds 
and held my fire until the director sights on the bridge 
came on for firing the port foremost torpedo. I saw the 
first lieutenant, Despard, making ready to fire at the sec- 
ond ship in the line. He was very deliberate about his 
shot, and after he had given the order to fire the port 
foremost torpedo, I held on for a few seconds in order to 
give the torpedo a chance to clear the tube, before alter- 
ing course to go right in amongst the squadron of raid- 
ers. Standing at the compass I conned the Broke with 
the intention of ramming the destroyer against which we 
had launched a torpedo, and before I had steadied, the 
controlling officer opened fire with our foremost guns 
with independent firing, for the range was so short. 
Despard was watching the torpedo he had fired speeding 
through the water, and quite suddenly he yelled out, 
"We've got her." I replied, "Got what?" and before he 
could answer our torpedo reached its mark, striking a 
destroyer which afterwards turned out to be G.85, 
plumb amidships. My intention had been to ram this 
vessel, but it was now not necessary to do so. I put my 
helm hard aport and swung away to starboard for a mat- 



122 KEEPING THE SEAS 

ter of seconds and then, just as I had made up my mind 
that it was time to turn again in order to ram the next 
boat following astern of the torpedoed one, my navi- 
gator, Lieut. G. V. Hickman, said quickly, " If you put 
the helm over now, sir, you'll get this next one all right." 
I put the helm hard starboard, righted it and then we 
watched. Those in the destroyer we intended to run 
down had gathered what our intention was, but for them 
it was too late. A cloud of smoke and sparks belched 
forth from their funnels, and we got a momentary whiff 
of this as we tore towards her; it all happened in a few 
seconds, and the feeling of exhilaration as we were about 
to strike her can never be repeated; at the moment we 
crashed into her port side, abreast of the after funnel, 
my enthusiasm overcame me and I shouted out, " That 
means two months' leave." 

Our strong bow ground its way into the enemy ves- 
sel's flank; in the blaze of gun flashes we read her name, 
G.42, as her bow swung round towards us, while we 
carried her bodily away on our ram. 

The Broke, steaming at 27 knots, whirled this de- 
stroyer practically on her beam ends, so that she could 
not fire. It must have been a dreadful moment for those 
on board. One of her torpedo tubes stuck into our side 
and was wrenched right off its mounting. Our guns, 
which would bear at maximum depression, were turned 
on to this wretched ship and we literally squirted 4-inch 
shell into the helpless vessel. 

In fine weather we always kept three loaded rifles, 
with bayonets fixed, at each gun, and one at each tube 
and after-searchlight. Cutlasses were provided all 
round the upper deck, besides which revolvers were sup- 
plied to petty officers, and there were many kept loaded 



KEEPING THE SEAS 123 

on the bridge. The anti-aircraft pom-poms were also 
manned, and at the moment of ramming, when Lieut. 
Despard piped " boarders " on the forecastle, the weap- 
ons practically fell into the hands of the men who were 
waiting to use them. 

In a few seconds after the shock of the collision had 
been felt, a deadly fire was poured from our fore part 
into the huddled mass of men who, terror-struck, were 
grouped about the enemy destroyer's decks. Many of 
them clambered up our bow and got on to the forecastle, 
to meet with instant death from our well-armed seamen 
and stokers. There was no question of the enemy board- 
ing us with the idea of inflicting damage, they came on 
board to save their own lives, but in the confusion of 
the action, the Broke' s men took no chances. 

Midshipman Donald A. Gyles, R.N.R., who was 
wounded with a shell splinter, took charge on the fore- 
castle, and organised a gun crew from the survivors of 
those foremost gun crews who had suffered many casu- 
alties, and thus kept the guns continually going. He 
also repelled the German sailors who swarmed on board 
from the destroyer, freely using his revolver. 

Up on the bridge we had quite a merry time. Accord- 
ing to our custom we had laid a number of loaded 
revolvers round the little range-finder platform on the 
after side of our bridge. There was nothing very much 
for us to do while we were steaming ahead with G.42 
on our bow. The next destroyer astern of her passed 
ahead of us, and the one following after passed astern. 
This one I attempted to torpedo by order from the 
bridge, but all our controls were shot away and we could 
get no answer from the tubes. One of these destroyers, 
passing us at close range, was torpedoed by order of 



124 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Mr. F. Grinney, our torpedo gunner, but the No. i of 
the tube, Leading Seaman G. Ivens, was killed imme- 
diately he had fired his torpedo, before he had the sat- 
isfaction of seeing it run true. 

I do not pretend that we in the Broke escaped with- 
out injury during this welcome action. The German ac- 
count made out that the enemy torpedoed several light 
cruisers and sank sundry torpedo craft, and if two super 
destroyers were mistaken for a flotilla of light cruisers 
and torpedo craft, one can excuse the Germans, because, 
although there were only six against us, there was a 
moment when we on the bridge of the Broke thought 
that quite fifteen ships were against us, in the confusion 
of the blaze of the fire, the choking smoke, the men's 
cries and the noise of exploding shells. 

I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed myself, although 
at one time I was very frightened, for a shell from one 
of the German destroyers passing down our starboard 
side hit a box of cordite on the Broke's forecastle, and 
this, after being thrown into the air, fell on our bridge. 
The cordite was scattered about and on fire. The high 
flames lit us up so much that we were a target to the 
enemy vessels, and we certainly were punished severely. 
We had killed everything we could see on board G.42 ; 
her stern was sinking more and more until we finally 
steamed right over her, and we then made to ram 
another enemy vessel; this we missed, owing to our loss 
of speed, due to an explosion in one of the boiler rooms 
which cut our main steam pipes. The Broke was now 
on fire amidships as well as on the bridge, steam was 
escaping with a horrible noise and we were rapidly 
losing headway. I remember blowing up my life-saving 
waistcoat, which I had put on for the first time; I gave 



KEEPING THE SEAS 125 

it three good sturdy puffs, said about three words of 
prayer that I should be spared for my wife's sake, and 
then turned my attention to doing more damage to the 
enemy. 

We in the Broke were heading to pursue the remain- 
ing enemy destroyers, of which we could make out one 
ahead and one to starboard, but they slipped away in the 
darkness and we could discern the Swift in chase. As I 
said before, the night was very dark, but the Germans, 
when they attempted to get away, were flaming from 
their funnels, as also was the Swift. After a very short 
interval my artificer engineer came up on to the bridge 
and informed me that the loss of feed water was so 
great that he could not steam more than half speed. 
He pointed out that we must eventually stop, and we 
therefore turned and made towards two sinking destroy- 
ers. A mile from them we passed through a great 
number of Germans swimming in the sea. Possibly 
phosphorescence was responsible for what we saw, but 
the swimming Germans appeared to have some calcium 
light fitting in the life-saving waistcoats which they 
wore, and this we thought made a flicker of flame in the 
water, to which we attributed the number of twinkling 
lights which could be seen in the sea all round us; these 
flickered and blinked like fairy lights on pantomime 
elves. The unfortunate Germans cried out, " Save, 
save," but the action was not yet finished, and though I 
should in all probability have returned to save what I 
could, I did not at that time forget the poor little Flirt, 
the recent bombardment of our undefended coast towns, 
the torpedoing of hospital ships, and the crime of the 
Lusitania. My first lieutenant asked me whether I 
would not stop then and lower boats, but I had to in- 



126 KEEPING THE SEAS 

form him that I was out to finish the fight first, before 
attending on midnight bathers. 

I expected the enemy to return and put up another 
fight, and it was not long before we saw in the darkness 
the phosphorescent wake of an approaching destroyer. 
She flashed out the challenge, but we could not reply, 
owing to all our electric circuits having been shot away, 
besides which, our bridge had been gutted fairly well, 
for it had been hit in thirty-two places by shells, shell 
splinters and small stuff. Fortunately, the yeoman 
Smith had an electric torch; I told him to spell out 
" B-R-O-K-E-" which he did, and then we learnt that 
the destroyer was the Szvift. 

We heard them cheering in the darkness, and gave 
them a faint cheer back. We closed one of the two sink- 
ing destroyers, and I observed that her upper deck was 
aflame and that she had a big hole under the forecastle 
through which fire could be seen. Some men on her 
cried out, " Surrender," and I shouted through the 
megaphone, " All right, we will pick you up," but an 
inconsiderate fellow on board her fired a round from the 
foremost 4-inch gun, which passed through our bridge, 
and we therefore gave it them in the neck with four 
rounds of our own 4-inch, three of which were hits. 

Peppe, our sub-lieutenant, earlier in the action, finding 
that the torpedo control had been shot away, reported 
this and was sent off to torpedo with the starboard tube, 
whenever he got his chance. As I have already ex- 
plained, the torpedo gunner had fired one torpedo from 
the starboard tube, the after one as it happened, as the 
foremost torpedo could not be fired, owing to a shell 
having struck and bent the firing lever. Peppe, the 
moment he saw the sinking German ship open fire as 



KEEPING THE SEAS 127 

described, let go the port after-torpedo at a 200 yards 
range, and we on the bridge witnessed the track of this 
as it sped along towards its target. The torpedo had 
been set to run at a six foot depth, and it hit the enemy 
vessel on the starboard side, near the stern. She still 
took some few minutes before sinking, and, unfortu- 
nately for us, we were then compelled to stop on account 
of such a loss of feed water that, although the engineers 
had attempted to use salt water in the boilers, there was 
a danger of burning them out. While watching this 
vessel sink, the navigator pointed out that it would be a 
toss up whether the flames reached her magazine and 
blew her up, or whether she sank first. Had she blown 
up, we might have suffered severely — we were drifting 
on to her and my ship would no longer steer; I accord- 
ingly sent an officer down to the engine room to explain 
the situation, and we managed to get a little steam on 
to the engines, with which we went slowly astern, and 
then stopped. This sternway, fortunately, was sufficient 
to keep us from colliding. H.M.S. Mentor came out 
from Dover and closed us; I ordered her alongside; her 
captain, Lieut.-Commander Landon, berthed her splen- 
didly on my port side, and hawsers were quickly passed 
from one ship to the other. He started going astern 
and got some way on us just as the enemy vessel sank. 
This all took place in a very short time, and I was 
delighted at Landon's seamanship. He was mentioned 
in despatches for this piece of work. 

The Swift now closed the other sinking destroyer — no 
lights were burning in her and apparently she was 
G.42, the one that we had rammed; some of her crew 
had taken to the boats and could be seen in the glare of 
the Swift's foremost searchlight, pulling desperately 



128 KEEPING THE SEAS 

towards the British vessel. All her survivors were taken 
on board, and from them we subsequently learned that 
six vessels had come out from Zeebrugge — three of them 
in the action appeared to be sunk by " a colossal naval 
force almost simultaneously." The Mentor had picked 
up a number of prisoners, which she transferred to us in 
exchange for our wounded, and took these to Dover as 
quickly as possible. We, in the meantime, anchored to 
wait for dawn, when we hoped to be towed back into 
port. Having nothing better to do, I interrogated 
these prisoners, and finding one who spoke Danish, ob- 
tained a good deal of information from him. He told 
us that he understood that seven cruisers had attacked 
them, and when I informed him that we were only two 
large destroyers, he would scarcely believe it, and con- 
tinually shook his head. He told me that the prisoners 
were most indignant that a ship should charge right 
down their line, and he said that it was most unlooked 
for and gave them no chance to torpedo us. We ob- 
tained from this man the number of his ship (G.85), 
which was torpedoed, and that of G.42, the rammed 
vessel. He also gave us particulars as to their crews — 
they apparently carried 90 men each. 

The damage sustained by the Swift was one hit under 
the forecastle with a 4.1-inch shell. This exploded, 
killed one man and wounded four, besides making a hole 
in the side. Our own damage was a bent and buckled 
stem, two large holes, port side of the forecastle, above 
the water line, one shell on the forecastle which struck 
our own shell in the rack and exploded two; unfortu- 
nately, this caused a great number of casualties amongst 
the gun crews there. One shell came through the 
bridge from forward on the port side, and exploded 



KEEPING THE SEAS 129 

on the side of the lower bridge, killing the signalman 
of the watch and badly wounding the quartermaster and 
telegraph man. Another shell went through the star- 
board side wing of the fore bridge. One shell hit the 
port side, above the water line, and passing through the 
coaling bunkers exploded in the boiler room, killing all 
in it and carrying away the main steam pipe. Another 
shell abaft the after wireless house exploded on the star- 
board side, before the after torpedo tube there, and 
killed several men. The compass, wireless telegraph in- 
stallation and after searchlight were all knocked out of 
action by small ammunition. All the electric wires and 
voice pipe communication were shot away, and we had a 
number of minor damages caused by shell fragments, 
presumably. The foremost funnel had a great number 
of holes in it — in fact it resembled a sieve as seen from 
the bridge. The bridge, as stated, suffered a good deal, 
and it is surprising to me how few casualties we had 
up here. I remember an interesting episode which oc- 
curred just after we had rammed G.42. " Our Mr. 
Smith," who was holding a telescope, which he always 
did night and day, was looking over the port side of the 
Broke' s bridge on to the huddled mass of frightened men 
on the German destroyer's deck below him. Suddenly 
he skipped to the range-finder platform, took two loaded 
revolvers and handed them up to the first lieutenant. 
" Come on, sir. Here's your chance," he said, and in 
a few seconds Despard's tall, grim figure was to be seen 
emptying the contents of the two automatic pistols into 
the scared group of Boches. Smith was not much be- 
hind him and between the two, I am told, they got rid 
of sixty rounds of pistol ammunition — one hardly ex- 
pects this sort of thing in modern naval warfare. 
9 



130 KEEPING THE SEAS 

I am sorry to say we had fifty-seven casualties on the 
Broke, of which twenty-one were killed outright and 
one or two more died later. 

While I do not pretend that our wounded in this little 
action suffered more or even as much as many of those 
that we have seen clothed in that blue hospital garb that 
we all know so well — those who have faced the barbar- 
ism of the German and who have borne, perhaps, the 
infliction of torturing gas and liquid fire — I cannot re- 
frain from mentioning one case which is significant of 
the true spirit of the Navy. 

When we had satisfied ourselves that no further 
enemy action was to be expected, I left the bridge of 
the Broke with my first lieutenant and proceeded to 
make a little tour of inspection to visit the wounded, 
and to see what damage had been done. 

I came down into my cabin, which was the after 
dressing-station in action, and here I found many 
wounded sitting round my cabin table, cheerful and 
uncomplaining. A man apologised for bleeding all over 
the seat of my settee, and I quickly put his mind at rest 
on that subject. One of the wounded with whom I 
conversed was Stoker John Clasper; this man was off 
watch during our little scrap, but his action station, 
while not employed below, was to assist in loading a 
gun. A German shell had exploded near him, blowing 
men to pieces, and fragments of hot steel had torn their 
way into his back and hips. He must have suffered 
agony, but Clasper continued at his post until the action 
was over; he was visited by a stretcher party, but he 
sent them off to succor others and made his way down 
to my cabin to await his turn for surgical aid. Even 
when Helsham, our surgeon probationer, could help him, j 



KEEPING THE SEAS 131 

he remarked that he was in no hurry and begged the 
doctor to attend to others who were in worse pain per- 
haps. I was told that this man could never properly re- 
cover, and a few days later, when I stood at his bedside, 
I met his wife, a little woman from Newcastle, who in- 
formed me with brave cheerfulness that he had been a 
good husband to her and that she would work for him 
willingly, and that to do so was going to be the pleasure 
of her life. This woman was typical of many who 
bravely gave their men to fight for the allied cause, and 
the man Clasper, was typical of the Broke' s ship's com- 
pany. 

Often now, when there seems a rather doubtful future 
for the naval officer and the man trained to arms, I 
think, like many others, that perhaps it is not too late to 
break away from the navy and start a new profession; 
but when I think it all over, I feel I cannot tear myself 
away from men like these, whom it is such an honour to 
command. I feel that they have done so much for me 
and I have got so much good out of my association with 
them that perhaps, after all, I shall be happier remain- 
ing in the service and going where I am sent. For, what- 
ever one hears of Bolshevism, and revolutionary talk, I 
can say truly that I have never found anything but gen- 
erosity, pride of ship, and big-hearted willingness 
amongst these splendid men. I am quite confident that 
nothing can change the brotherhood of the seas. 

Concerning this destroyer fight, in which we were so 
fortunate, there were, of course, the bright and the 
sad side. 

When dawn sulkily broke, I walked round our decks, 
which were all slippery with blood, and found the doctor 
identifying the dead. When they had been collected 



132 KEEPING THE SEAS 

and reverently covered with flags, the remainder of the 
ship's company scrubbed down and white-washed over 
all the blood-splashed places, so that nothing horrid 
remained to hurt the eye or to remind one of this, the 
grim aspect of the story. Once this had been done, the 
injured ones cheered up splendidly, and when it became 
light, my sailors were all smiles, for they had got their 
own back once again. 

Many of my ship's company had served in the Glas- 
gow, when she witnessed the sinking of the Good Hope 
and Monmouth off Valparaiso on November ist, 19 14, 
by the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, and they had also 
been present when Admiral Sturdee's squadron in the 
Falkland Islands battle had sunk the Scharnhorst, 
Gneisenau, Leipzig and Niirnberg; and yet again they 
paid their debts in full when the Glasgow sank the 
Dresden on March 14th, 19 15, near Juan Fernandez 
Island. We certainly had a well-trained fighting ship's 
company, although the Broke had not been in action 
since the Jutland battle on the 31st May, 19 16, nearly a 
year before. There is no doubt that they were men who 
were made of fighting stuff. 

The Broke was towed into harbour and berthed by 
two large tugs from Dover. One could not help feeling 
a bit lumpy in the throat when the other ships' com- 
panies cheered us again and again. Not least among 
these cheers were those of the little drifters' crews, who 
made cock-a-doodle-doo's on their syrens until the din 
of hooting was almost deafening. 

It is interesting to note that the Broke had been nine 
nights on patrol, had coaled ship twice during that 
period, and that on the afternoon of the 20th April, she 
had taken in a large amount of coal at the rate of eighty- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 133 

seven tons an hour. In spite of this her crew never 
considered that they were overworked, and were always 
full of zeal. 

On counting up the prisoners taken by the Swift and 
picked up by various boats, which were sent out to 
search, we found we had saved 140 German officers and 
men. I saw' them marched away from the naval pier. 
They were a very big lot, of good physique, with one or 
two exceptions. A crowd of people was waiting to see 
them when they landed, and everybody was quite quiet 
and well-behaved towards the prisoners. There was 
nothing cock-a-hoop about the onlookers, only one me- 
chanic from the R.N.A.S. quite spoilt the dignity of 
the proceeding by yelling " Are yer 'ungry? " which he 
might have left unsaid. This was, of course, in the days 
before coupons were inflicted on us. 

The German dead were buried on the 22nd April, and 
many of us from the destroyers attended their funeral. 
The Vice-Admiral sent a wreath, on which was written, 
" To a brave enemy." This seems to have caused a lot 
of adverse comment in the newspapers at that time, 
because it was stated that Admiral Bacon's inscription 
was, " To a brave and gallant enemy," which he had 
not written; not that it really mattered, but in those 
days of submarine murders one could hardly attribute 
the quality of gallantry to German naval men. 

Our own brave dead were buried the following day 
when all Dover turned out to pay their last mark of 
respect to our fallen sailors. The funeral of the Broke' 's 
men and the one man killed on the Swift, naturally left 
a lasting impression on one's mind, and made one feel 
how hateful war was. We who had come out unscathed 
received a lot of decorations and rewards for our serv- 



134 KEEPING THE SEAS 

ices, but we were not unmindful of the poor relatives 
who had lost their nearest and dearest; their drawn 
cheeks, dimmed eyes and pale faces, one cannot forget. 
I marched alongside Captain Peck, immediately behind 
the coffins, and we passed through the crowded streets 
in slow time. 

I still have my memories of that funeral; the children 
craning their necks to gaze at the enormous wreaths of 
flowers which almost covered the bright coloured union 
jacks in which the coffins were wrapped; the solemn 
notes of music that echoed and reverberated through the 
old-fashioned town that has witnessed so much of his- 
tory; and Dover Castle towering high above everything, 
proudly defiant, with its fluttering flag almost exclaim- 
ing to the dead, " You did not die in vain." 

When, after the service was over, we who had paid 
our last tribute to our fallen comrades, took our ship to 
London under her own steam, for by this time we had 
patched our steam pipe and already made good many 
of the defects consequent upon the action. 

It took two months to repair our bows and fit us with 
a new stem, and we got a fine slice of leave. I knew, the 
moment that we had rammed G.42 that this would 
happen, because we could not get off scot free from a 
bump like that, and so my enthusiastic prophecy, which 
escaped my lips in that second of excitement, came 
true. 

The appended copy of a page from the " London 
Gazette " gives the awards and honours conferred by 
His Majesty on those who took part in this particular 
destroyer action, and the lists following the despatch 
show what our casualties were in the Broke. In addi- 
tion to the wounded mentioned, there were a number 



KEEPING THE SEAS 135 

of slightly wounded, which made the total casualties 
up to fifty-seven. 

SIXTH SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE 
Of TUESDAY, the %th of MAY, 1917 

Admiralty, S.W. 

10 th May, 1917 

Honours for Service in the Action between H.M. Ships Swift and 
Broke and German Destroyers, on the Night of the 20th to 21st 
April, 1917. 

The KING has been graciously pleased to give orders for the ap- 
pointment of the undermentioned Officers to be Companions of the 
Distinguished Service Order, in recognition of their services in com- 
mand of H.M.S. Swift and H.M.S. Broke respectively, on the night of 
the 20th to 21st April, 1917, when they successfully engaged a flotilla 
of five or six German destroyers, of which two were sunk: — 

Cdr. (now Capt.) Ambrose Mavnard Peck, R.N. 

Cdr. (now Capt.) Edward Ratc'liffe Garth Russell Evans, C.B., R.N. 



The KING has further been graciously pleased to give orders for 
the award of the Distinguished Service Cross to the undermentioned 
Officers for the services during this action: — 
Lieut. Goeffrey Victor Hickman, R.N. 

Navigator and second in command of H.M.S. Broke. He assisted 
with great coolness in handling the ship in action. His proper appre- 
ciation of the situation when one enemy destroyer was torpedoed, 
which his commanding officer had made ready to ram, enabled course 
to be altered in time to ram the next astern. 

Lieut. Robert Douglas King-Harman, R.N. Navigating Officer of 

H.M.S. Swift. 

He was of the utmost assistance to his commanding officer through- 
out. 

Lieut. Maximilian Carden Despard, R.N. 

First and Gunnery Lieut, of H.M.S. Broke. He controlled gun fire 

and gave the orders which resulted in an enemy destroyer being 

torpedoed. 

Lieut. Henry Antony Simpson, R.N. 

Executive Officer and Gunnery Lieut, of H.M.S. Swift. He dis- 
played great coolness and method in the control of fire which he 

had very ably organised and zealously drilled, and greatly assisted 

his commanding officer throughout the action. 

Surg. Prob. Christopher Thomas Helsham, R.N.V.R. (Broke). 

Surg. Prob. John Sinclair Westwater, R.N.V.R. (Swift). 

Worked with great energy and ability in attending to the 

wounded. 



136 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



Gnr. (T.) Henry Turner, R.N. (Swift). 

Obtained a hit with a torpedo on one of the enemv destroyers. 
Gnr. (T.) Frederick Grinney, R.N. (Broke). 

Gave orders for the firing of the torpedo which struck on to the 
enemy destroyers. 
Mid. Donald Allen Gyles, R.N.R. (Broke). 

He took charge on the forecastle, and, although wounded in the 
eye, organised a gun's crew from the survivors of the crews which 
had suffered heavy casualties and kept the guns on the forecastle 
going. He repelled the German sailors who swarmed on board 
from the destroyer which was rammed, and remained at his post 
until after the action was finished. 

The following awards have also been approved: — 

To receive the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal. 

A.B. William George Rawles, O.N., 201767 (Po.). 

Although he had four bad wounds in his legs, in addition to other 
injuries, he continued to steer H.M.S. Broke in action until the 
enemy destroyer had been rammed. 

To receive the Distinguished Service Medal 

*Yeo. Sig. William Smith, ON., 213714 (Po.). 

O.S. Herbert Thomas Huntley Fowle, O.N., S.S., 7516 (Po.). 

Sto. Charles Williams, R-N.R. (New Zealand), O.N., 27358. 

Sto., 1st CI., John Clasper, O.N., S.S., 103869 (R.F.R., Po./B. 4652). 

Ch. Sto- William Shearn, O.N., 279752 (Po.). 

P.O. Tel. Harrv Sedglev, O.N., 239909 (Dev.). 

P.O. William Edward Strevens, O.N-, 232542 (Po.). 

P.O. George Henry Froud, O.N., 218906 (Po.). 

P.O. Albert Last, O-N., 208689 (Po.). 

A.B. Sidney Clarke, O.N., J. 5244 (Po.). 

A.B. Charles Reginald Norton, O-N., J. 18427 (Po.). 

A.B. Ernest Ramsden Ingleson, O.N., J. 5723 (Po.). 

A.B. Walter Frederick Mair, O-N., J. 55500 (Po.). 

C.P.O. John Crother Ashton, O.N., 157639 (Po.). 

P.O. Sidney Albert Simmonds, O-N., 180242 (Po.). 

P.O. Charles Henry Daish, O.N., 182240 (Po.). 

Ch. E. R. A. William Culverwell, O.N., 268992 (Ch.). 

P.O. Frederick Percy Mursell, O.N., 162299 (Po.). 

Ch. Sto. Henry Simmons, O-N., 276070 (Ch.). 

Sto. P.O. William Edward Heaseman, O.N., 361422 (Po.). 

Yeo. Sig. Albert Ebenezer James, O.N., 210513 (Po.). 

Sto. P.O. James Bryant, O.N., 310822 (Po.). 

Sto. Edward Gilfillan, R.N.R., O.N., 9099, S. 

Sto. Sidney Frederick Brooks, O.N., S.S. 111490 (Po.). 



* Smith received a bar to the D.S.M-, which he had already gained 
in the earlier coast bombardments. 




W 
O 



W 
H 

J 
W 

co 

W 

< 

PQ 
£> 
co 

<; 



KEEPING THE SEAS 137 

The following Officers and Men have been mentioned in despatches: 
Engr. Lieut.-Cdr. (now Engr. Cdr.) James Hughes, R.N. 
Engr. Lieut.-Cdr. (now Engr. Cdr.) Thomas George Coomber, R.N. 
Lieut.-Cdr. Arthur Jermyn Landon, R.N. 
Sub-Lieut. Whitworth Brady Nicholson, R.N. 
Act. Sub.-Lieut. Lionel Hill Peppe, N-R. 
Wt. Mech. James Coughlan, R.N. 
Act. Art-Engr. Charlie Rodges Barter, R.N. 
Mid. Maurice Theobald Maud, R.N.R. 
P.O. Charles Christmas Brown, O.N., 155936 (Po.). 
Ldg. Sig. William Page, O.N., 227145 (Po.). 
Ldg. Sto. Frank William King, O.N., 306009 (Po.). 
Ldg. Sto. Eli Daniels, O.N., 294996 (Po.). 

E.R.A., 2nd CI., Walter Blanchard Wellman, O-N., M. 1218 (Po.). 
A.B. William George Cleeter, O.N., J. 21405 (Po.). 
0-S. Sidney John Thomas Taylor, O.N., S.S. 7576 (Po.). 
Sto., 2nd CI., Frederick Arthur Hickman, O.N., K. 33575 (Po.). 
Sto., 1st CI., George Henry Doe, O.N., K. 7694 (Po.). 
A.B. John Henton, O.N., J. 17762 (Po.). 
Sto., 1st CI., Albert Edward Glover, O.N., 232320 (Po.). 
A.B. Henry Alfred Hitchin, O.N., 228372 (Po.). 
Ldg. Sig. Charles Clause Higgins, O.N., J. 10417 (Po-). 
S.B. A. James Gradwell, O.N., M. 16759 (Po-). 
Sto., 1st CI., Ernest Muff, O.N., K. 32517 (Po-). 
Sig. Sidney Charles Helps, R.N.V.R., O.N., Z/9587 (Tyneside). 
Ch. E.R.A. Ralph Victor Nelson, O.N-, 272497 (Po.). 
E.R.A. Henry Albert Riley, O.N., M. 4676 (Po-). 
Sto. P.O. Matthew Lawson, O.N., 303088 (R.F.R., Ch/B. 5783). 
Ldg. Stoker Frederick Thomas Yapp, O.N., K. 1672 (Po.). 
Sto., 1st CI., John Kempton Falconer, O.N., K. 32518 (Po.). 
Sto., 1st CI., Charles Herbert Harvey, O.N., S.S. 115725 (Po.). 
Sto. P.O. Thomas Davies, O-N., 289400 (Po.). 
Ldg. Sto. Charles Edward Walls, O.N., K. 969 (Po.). 
Sto. Albert Bovland, R.N.R., O.N., S. 4945. 
Sto., 1st CI., Charles Edward Miller, O.N., 280751 (R.F.R.Po/B.2355). 

The following promotions have been made for service in this action: 
Commanders to be Captains. 
Cdr. Ambrose Mavnard Peck. 
Cdr. Edward Ratcliffe Garth Russell Evans, C.B. 

Engr. Lieut.-Com manners to be Commanders. 
Engr. Lieut-Cdr. James Hughes. 
Engr- Lieut.-Cdr. Thomas George Coomber. 

All to date, April 21st, 1917. 

The following officers have been noted for early promotion: 
Sub.-Lieut. Whitworth Brady Nicholson, R.N. 
Act. Sub.-Lieut. Lionel Hill Peppe, R.N. 
Wt. Mech. James Coughlan, R.N. 
Mid. Maurice Theobald Maud. R.N.R. 



i 3 8 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Before concluding this chapter, I must say that the 
night patrol organisation of the Broke didn't give us 
much rest; it was not meant to, and we on the bridge did 
all we could to keep ourselves awake, and to qualify 
properly for membership of the " Owls' Club," as we 
called ourselves. Generally speaking, the navigator and 
I conned the ship alternately for an hour at a time, the 
first lieutenant and the sub, took charge of the torpedo 
and gunnery control in hourly turns as well, and those 
not actually taking charge, crouched under the shelter 
of the bridge screens and, with half-closed eyes, listened 
to the other pair discussing with gay seriousness the 
affairs of the nation, the conduct of the war and the 
hundreds of little items of interest that go to fill up the 
horizon of a sailor's utterable thoughts. 

The navigator of the Broke, in particular, possessed 
the retentive memory of the sailor, which, combined 
with his gift of expression, made him an excellent bridge 
companion and a worthy supporter of the " Owls' 
Club." 

We stuck to facts at these seances, and kept those 
occasional waves of sentiment and patriotic appreciation 
for the wounded soldiers in the hospital ships, that we 
now and then rubbed shoulders with, in Calais or 
Boulogne, when we gladly contributed for their comfort 
those little stores of " Woodbines " and " Three 
Castles " that our miniature canteen contained — that 
was about all we had to give. 

Before I finally break away from the subject of the 
Szvift and Broke destroyer scrap, I must include a lit- 
tle story about the R.N.V.R. signalman, whose curios- 
ity led him into trouble. 

The Webley-Scott magazine revolvers with which we 



KEEPING THE SEAS 139 

were supplied are not nice things to play with; accidents 
very easily happen to men unskilled in handling them. 
To avoid constantly loading and unloading them, and to 
have them always ready for action, in this ship 
I kept the revolvers loaded. Directly the Broke was 
secured to her buoy in Dover Harbour, after her night 
patrol, it was one of the duties of " our Mr. Smith " to 
take these revolvers down from the range-finder plat- 
form and place them on the mattress of the bridge cabin 
which was never occupied by day. He then locked the 
cabin and returned the key to the keyboard. 

So much for our state of readiness ; but there is such a 
thing as being too ready, especially when people are 
over-curious. I had given orders that no one was to 
be admitted into the bridge cabin without my own per- 
mission; but the day before we had this fight, our ship- 
wright was working in the cabin while most of us were 
asleep. A young signalman was keeping watch, and 
seeing the shipwright come out of the cabin and leave 
the door open while he went down for some tools, the 
youngster, whose curiosity overcame him, walked into 
the cabin and found all the revolvers sleeping peacefully 
side by side, under the notice, " Dangerous; don't 
touch." 

But the warning was not good enough for our young 
friend. He picked up one of the revolvers and while he 
was turning it over in his hands to examine it, it suddenly 
went off and shot him in the fleshy part of his left arm. 
The poor boy was very frightened when blood spurted 
out and covered the deck of the bridge cabin. Then my 
surgeon was called and, after inspecting the wound and 
bandaging it, he came to me and reported. I was not 
very pleased at being awakened from my sleep after so 



i 4 o KEEPING THE SEAS 

many nights at sea, but hearing that there had been an 
accident I quickly made my way on deck, where the 
doctor, the patient and Smith, the yeoman of signals, 
were waiting for instructions. To say the least of it, 
I was annoyed at the man putting himself out of action 
when signalmen were so scarce, and I was angry that 
the man should have pryed into my cabin when he 
should have been keeping his signal watch. I deter- 
mined to give him a lesson, and instead of his getting 
any sympathy, I said, " What do you mean by shooting 
yourself in my cabin." The poor little signalman was 
taken aback at the sharp way in which I addressed him 
and, being thoroughly unnerved by the accident, he sud- 
denly burst into tears. I am afraid I was brute enough 
to say, " I shall give you fourteen days cells when you 
come out of hospital for unlawfully shooting yourself 
in my cabin." 

The man then went to hospital, and a few days after- 
wards I came to the naval sick quarters at Deal with a 
motor-car loaded with cigarettes, fruit, papers and 
every variety of article that I could think of for my 
wounded. My wife came with me, carrying two large 
baskets full of nice things. The naval nursing sisters 
showed us to the bedsides of the wounded men from the 
Swift and the Broke, and we plied them with about as 
much as the tables by the little beds would carry. 
Looking at the report over one man's bed, I saw that he 
was a signalman, which I could not understand, seeing 
that the only injured signalman in the action had been 
blown to smithereens. I said to the man before me, 
" Where were you in the action " ? He looked rather 
wistfully at me and replied, " I'm afraid sir, I am the 
one you gave fourteen days' cells to, for shooting myself 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



141 



in your cabin," and then he added that he was very un- 
happy at missing a nice little fight through such an act 
of thoughtlessness. 

I felt most awfully sorry for him, and quickly put 
his thoughts at rest by informing him that I thought he 
had been punished enough and that I would not sign 
the warrant for sending him to cells. His boyish face 
lit up and he was soon weighing in with the best of them 
at the chocolates and fruits. 





H.M.S. 


BROKE 






21 st April, 1917 




Killed 


Geoffrey G. Ivens 






Leading Seaman 


George Tubb 






. A.B. 


Joe W. Bagnall 






. A.B. 


Christopher T- Samways 




. A.B. 


Robert V. Towers 






. O.S. 


Harry Hosier 






. O.S. 


Harry G. Orchard 






. Sto. P.O. 


Charles E. Dart 






. Ldg. Sto. 


David Brian 






. Ldg. Sto. 


Thomas B. Bannister 






. Ldg. Sto. 


Alfred Webb 






. Sto. 


Robert Norford 






. Sto. 


Fred Carder 






. Sto. 


George W. Thompson 




. Sto. 


Fred. R. Bailey 






. Sto., R.F.R. 


William Thorpe 






. Sto. 


James J. Rafferty 






. Sto. 


Epton, Bellamy 






. Sto. 


William Foxhall 






. Sto. 


Samuel Field 






. Sto., R.F.R. 


Walter H. Lockett 






. Sto., R.N.V.R. 




Tota 


1 21 





Herbert Fowle 



Wounded 
Dangerous 
19, O.S- Multiple injuries. 



142 



KEEPING THE SEAS 



Donald A. Gyles . . 
Arthur Read 
Victor Yates 
George Featherstone 
Henry Camm 
Charles G. Jess 
Sidney Clarke 
William C. Turner 
John Clasper 
William Hanwell 



Severe 

19, Mid. R.N.R. 
24, Sto. 
21, A-B. 
21, A.B. 

30, Ldg. 
26, O.S. 

24, A.B. 
28, Sto. 

31, Sto. 

25, Sto. 



Sto. 



Serious 



William G. Rawles 36, A.B. 



Harry Sedgley 
Albert J. Mitchell 

Ernest Taylor 



Thomas E. Chitty 
Ernest E. Stoles . . 
John T. Mabey 
Leonard Robinson.. 
James Pott 
Herbert Clarke 

George Huke 
Samuel Pichess 
J. W. Wright 



25, P.O.Tel. 

26, Ldg. Sto. 



38, Sto. 



Slight 



25, Sto. 

21, O.S. 
20, A.B. 

22, A.B. 
20, C.Q.S. 
35, Sto. 

19, Off. Std. 
19, Sig. 
46, Sto. 



Wound of Orbit. 
Wound of back. 
Multiple wounds. 
Wounds left foot. 
Multiple wounds left buttock. 
Multiple wounds. 
Wound of buttock. 
Multiple wounds. 
Wounds of hip and buttock. 
Multiple wounds. 

Shrapnel wound left side 

and left buttock. 
Shrapnel wounds left thigh. 
Shrapnel wounds left eye, 

both shoulders, left knee- 
Shrapnel w o u n d,s, chest 

scalp and arms. 

Multiple wounds. 

Wounds of head & forearm. 

Abrasions over left clavicle. 

Abrasions. 

Wound right forearm. 

Wound right upper arm, 

forearm and right leg. 
Wound left forearm. 
Wound left side. 
Wound head. 



Slightly wounded Returned to Duty 

F. Sleight . . . . Sto. P.O. Wound left big toe. 

Fied Main .. .. A.B. Grazes- 

Thomas Maguire . . Ldg. Sto. Grazes- 



Killed 
Wounded — 

Dangerous 

Severe 

Serious 

Slight 

Returned to duty 



Officers. 
. 



Men. 
21 

1 

9 
4 
9 

3 



Total 
21 



27 



Total, 48 



CHAPTER X 

A Busman's Holiday 

When I said in the last chapter that we got two months' 
leave while a new bow was being fitted to the Broke, I 
meant that we got two months' respite from Dover and 
the dark night patrols. 

The day of her arrival in London Docks, the Broke 
was taken charge of by Messrs. Fletcher, Sons and 
Fearnall, who set to work to make good her defects and 
to patch up the ragged holes that were everywhere ap- 
parent in her funnels and upper works. The lip of the 
German torpedo tube which had stuck in her bow was 
lifted out, and subsequently made into a huge bronze 
bell, which now hangs, suitably inscribed, on the quarter 
deck of the ship. 

Fletcher's yard being so close to London, Sir Edward 
Carson, the First Lord of the Admiralty, Admiral Jelli- 
coe, the First Sea Lord, and other members of the Board 
motored down to inspect the ship and to address a few 
words of congratulation to our ship's company. I learnt 
from Admiral Jellicoe that he wished me to go toQueens- 
town in order to meet the first six United States des- 
troyers, that were due to arrive on or about the ist May. 
The idea of my going there to welcome the first division 
of destroyers which were being sent over by our new 
naval ally, was to give them fresh impressions of de- 

143 



144 KEEPING THE SEAS 

stroyer fighting, and to tell them anything that I found 
out in my patrols which would help the American de- 
stroyer officers who had had no recent war experience. 

It was a delightful opportunity for me to renew my 
friendship with the Americans, from whom I had re- 
ceived unbounded hospitality during four months holi- 
day in the States in 19 14. To begin with, I met Ad- 
miral Sims and his staff in London. The keenness and 
enthusiasm of this great American naval officer had a 
most refreshing effect upon me, and I set off for Queens- 
town with his aide-de-camp, Lieut.-Commander Bab- 
cock and Lieut.-Commander Tobey, of the United States 
Naval Pay Corps, delighted at being selected to work 
with the Americans. I had not. landed in Ireland since 
the war. 

When our little party arrived in Kingstown, the 
Americans were interested in everything they saw. The 
well-known old man on the railway station platform, 
who walked up and down shouting out, " Irish Times, 
a penny," marked them down for his special prey when 
he saw that they were in a different uniform from those 
he had grown accustomed to. Everything here seemed 
so unwarlike and when, about midday, we arrived at 
Queenstown and looked at the peaceful scene from the 
Admiral's windows, we never dreamed of what was be- 
ing carried on under the direction of Admiral Sir Lewis 
Bayly, the Naval Commander-in-Chief. 

Queenstown was the home of the " Q " ships, the 
disguised merchant vessels that went forth to be tor- 
pedoed and attacked until, when they were sorely in- 
jured and sinking, their aggressor, the big, ocean-going 
German submarine, would approach them to gloat over 
the damage done and then herself be laid out by the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 145 

hidden batteries of guns, if a sufficient number of fight- 
ing men were left alive and so available when the op- 
portunity presented itself. 

No better example could have been set us than that 
afforded by those in the " Q " ships, who won their 
V.C.'s and D.S.O.'s under conditions which, to hear of, 
made one's flesh creep. We spent a few days at Queens- 
town before the American destroyers arrived, and dur- 
ing this short time we learnt something of the feats of 
arms performed by the " Q " ship heroes. It must be 
remembered that the " Q " boats were employed to 
sink submarines when our anti-submarine devices were 
very far from perfect and the Allies were hard put to it 
to hold their own against the ever-increasing number of 
enemy submarines, which were now being met in almost 
every part of the sea. 

The American destroyers and patrol boats were sent 
over first to Queenstown and then to Brest, Cherbourg, 
Gibraltar, etc., to patrol along the traffic routes and hunt 
the submarine down. At this time the Germans were 
endeavouring to force us to adopt the convoy system; 
when we eventually did adopt the convoy system, the 
Germans did all they possibly could to stop us employ- 
ing it; but of that, more later on. 

I suppose 19 1 7 was for us the most critical year of the 
war at sea, and the welcome addition of the American 
naval forces undoubtedly tightened the Allies' grip and 
served to harass the enemy more and more, as the 
United States continued to pour in their patrol boats, 
which now were being built with astonishing swiftness. 

On a beautiful spring morning the first six destroyers 
appeared on the western horizon. Our little party 
boarded the Wadsworth, the senior officer's ship, and 
10 



146 KEEPING THE SEAS 

accompanied the division up harbour. This division 
consisted of the : — Davis, JVadsworth, Pvrter, Mc- 
Dougall, Conyngham, Wainwright. 

They were splendid little ships, speed from 29 — 30 
knots, nearly 1,100 tons displacement, capable of steam- 
ing 3,000 miles at 15 knots without re-fuelling. The 
JV adsworth class were armed with four 4-inch guns and 
four pairs of 21-inch torpedo tubes. They carried a 
hundred officers and men each, and from the day the 
first six boats arrived at Queenstown, the training of the 
personnel was carried out, with a view to manning more 
and more destroyers, in the following manner: — 

One extra officer was carried in each ship and a certain 
number of ratings were continually drafted on board, 
extra to the complements. As soon as these men had 
attained the proper degree of efficiency, which they 
quickly did under the war patrol conditions, a propor- 
tion of senior officers and ratings returned to the United 
States, to form the nucleus of a brand new destroyer 
crew. This highly trained proportion quickly handed 
out their experience in tabloid form to the remainder 
of their ship's company, and the constant circulation 
yielded wonderful results. It also served to promote 
competition and to make the younger officers extra keen, 
so that they would the sooner become eligible to com- 
mand the older vessels. 

Those in the first six destroyers lost no time in getting 
themselves ready for their patrol work; in fact, they 
expressed their readiness to go out on patrol directly 
their boats had oiled, but the Admiral kept them at 
Queenstown for four days while they were fitted with 
depth charges and depth charge release gear; besides 
which, they had our identification signals arranged for 



KEEPING THE SEAS 147 

them. A set of confidential books, similar to those sup- 
plied to our own ships, was given to each vessel. 

Commander Taussig, of the Wadsworth, was in 
charge of the six destroyers, and he was an old friend of 
Admiral Jellicoe's, having been wounded in the Boxer 
Rebellion in 1900 as an Ensign, when by chance he had 
been a hospital mate of the Admiral, who was himself 
wounded in that campaign. Taussig was full of brains 
and go, and I was very much impressed by him, but the 
same may be said of all the destroyer captains who came 
over with these six splendidly suitable vessels. In the 
later days of the war I occasionally heard from one or 
other of these men, with whom I have endeavoured to 
keep in touch. If I was impressed with the Americans, 
I may safely say that they were all impressed with Ad- 
miral Bayly, who was one of the sternest and straightest 
men with whom I have ever come in contact. 

In the very short time I was at Queenstown, I learned 
to respect the Admiral and to admire him as I have 
seldom admired any man. But with all his sternness 
and in spite of his exacting way, which got the best pos- 
sible effort out of every man in his command, Admiral 
Sir Lewis Bayly had a heart of gold, and I only wish 
I had had the honour to serve under him for years in- 
stead of only for days. 

I watched with consuming interest the building up of 
the "Queenstown Navy." It did one good to hear the 
Admiral talk to the United States Naval officers, and my 
word, it did one good to hear them talk of " Uncle 
Lewis," as they called him. It was my privilege to 
accompany the commanding officers to Admiralty House 
whenever they were invited up to dinner, and we used 
to spend the happiest evenings in the society of the 



148 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Admiral and his niece. Perhaps we talked " shop " 
and war, but " Uncle Lewis " had a happy knack of 
making one as interested in " shop " and war as he did 
in everything else, with his magnetic personality and 
steel-true nature. I could not believe that this was the 
Lewis Bayly whose name had struck terror into the 
hearts of certain naval officers I had met, but I realise 
now that they must have been the exceptions who did 
not do their job. 

Sir Lewis Bayly soon won the confidence of all who 
were placed under him, and he picked out and secured 
for his commanders, men whose achievements in this 
war make one's pulse quicken and one's heart leap with 
joy and pride of race. 

Captain Gordon Campbell, V.C., the celebrated sub- 
marine "strafer," was just one of Uncle Lewis's pro- 
teges, and I will warrant that if Admiral Bayly was 
proud of Captain Campbell, this gallant officer was 
proud enough to be numbered amongst Admiral Bayly's 
friends. Of the Admiral, it hurts me to feel that some- 
where in South Devon that very gallant able gentleman 
is devoting his time and occupying his energies on the 
land, for the Navy employs him no more. But there are 
some of us in the Navy now with minds of our own and 
nothing in our naval careers of which to be ashamed, 
Who have learnt from " Uncle Lewis " how to face 
danger, moral and physical, with the unflinching gaze of 
that very true British sailor, and it is up to us to benefit 
by his example. I don't think any American naval of- 
ficer will disagree with what I have said. 

In a matter of four days, the first six United States 
destroyers left for their various patrol stations. It was 
my privilege to go out in the Wadszvorth, and that was 



KEEPING THE SEAS 149 

what I meant by the heading of this chapter. For me 
it was a " Busman's holiday " to go out in a destroyer 
on patrol after five hundred nights at sea in the war, 
and to have no responsibility. 

But I am sea-wolf enough properly to appreciate such 
a privilege. The destroyers steamed out in the early 
afternoon, and the Admiral stood on the roof of his old- 
fashioned house to see us one by one pass by. I expect 
every captain glanced aft and along his destroyer's side 
to see that nothing was amiss, for nothing escaped the 
searching glance of the Vice-Admiral commanding on 
the coast of Ireland. In a short half-hour these six 
beautiful ships were lifting their noses and gently re- 
sponding to the heave of the Atlantic swell. As they 
dipped after rising to each successive wave, the well- 
known hiss of rushing water struck its familiar note on 
my ear, and my heart leapt with gladness to be again 
at sea, with new forces, to seek out and destroy the 
enemy. If ever man could infuse patriotism and keen- 
ness into a seaman's soul, it was Admiral Bayly. Long 
after the last golden rays of the setting sun had 
ceased to reflect on the side lights of the six United 
States destroyers, and long after darkness had spread 
over the waters of this vast Atlantic, one felt that there 
was one sitting at Admiralty House, reading every sig- 
nal that our wireless sparked out, thinking, disposing 
and working us like chessmen to the best advantage; but 
what comforted and cheered us most was that that real 
man would reach out and save if anything befell us, his 
newly-adopted children of to-day. I spent the best part 
of a week with the U.S. naval force. The first night 
out a terrific explosion occurred at about eleven o'clock; 
I thought we had been torpedoed, but no, the officer 



150 KEEPING THE SEAS 

of the watch had seen what he took to be the wash of 
a submarine and had charged right at it, and then let 
go a depth charge. We couldn't say what he had seen, 
but he had certainly done right. 

The alarm bells rang, the members of the ship's 
company not on watch went to their station forthwith, 
and a search was made by Captain Taussig round about 
this position, but nothing was ever seen. 

It took one very little time to appreciate that the 
American destroyer officers needed no one to " hold 
their hands." They were very quick of brain, keen and 
enthusiastic, and all out to fight and help the Allies to 
make good. After four or five days at sea in the Wads- 
ivorth our patrol expired, and we proceeded to Bere- 
haven to oil and rest for two days before going out on 
the next patrol, which was to last for the best part of 
a week. If I remember rightly, the patrols were ar- 
ranged to do six days out and two days in harbour for 
fuelling, standing off, and making good the little defects 
which make their appearance even in the best constructed 
torpedo craft after constant steaming and knocking 
about in a seaway. 

The men of the United States Navy appreciated the 
beauty of Berehaven, surrounded as it was with mag- 
nificent hills, pretty little land-locked creeks, such as 
Glengariff, and dotted about with islets and rocks, which 
afforded a welcome change to the eye after the long 
patrols, which had a certain sameness about them, and 
were not usually marked by any incident of particular 
interest. After my sea-trip I said good-bye to the 
" Wadsworths " and felt that I had been made a really 
welcome guest. 

The Americans realised as quickly as any of the Allies 



KEEPING THE SEAS 151 

that depth charges, to fulfil their proper mission, should 
be used as freely as possible, and it was not long before 
the U.S. destroyer captains were begging Admiral Bayly 
to fit their ships with tiers of depth charges, instead of 
only a couple, which was the number carried by the first 
destroyers to patrol. As the supplies became available 
and the sterns of the ships were fitted to carry a large 
number, one grew quite used to seeing these craft prac- 
tically laden with water bombs, which could be set to 
go off at four or six different depths ranging from 50 
to 300 feet. 

I told the American destroyer officers what I had 
found, from my own experience, was useful in patrol 
work, just as I should have imparted the information to 
any new destroyer captain who had joined my own 
division; that is briefly as follows: — 

(1). Not to make unnecessary wireless telegraphy 
signals, and to reduce all signalling to a minimum. 

(2). Not to make unnecessary reports to the Ad- 
miral, who wants to know when things are going wrong, 
rather than when things are all in order. 

(3). To be most particular about look-outs and not 
to allow any look-out to be on for more than half-an- 
hour, nor to be relieved at night time until his relief 
had been with him for at least five minutes, so as to get 
accustomed to the darkness. 

(4). To fire a shot at a periscope for the simple rea- 
son that the splash would be a good guide to the eye 
and thus facilitate the dropping of the depth charge near 
to the objective. 

(5). To be most careful about darkening the ships 
at night; one of my few criticisms of the American de- 
stroyers was that they used canvas covers over their 



152 KEEPING THE SEAS 

scuttles, which should, I thought, have been fitted with 
" dead lights " — these canvas covers were apt to work 
off in heavy weather, especially if they were only secured 
by officers' stewards, who, in the case of the U.S. naval 
forces, were usually Phillipine boys or coloured men, 
not necessarily possessing the " habit of the sea." 

(6). To ram whenever possible, even although their 
own ships might sink in consequence, for they were to 
be supplied with Carley life floats, which were likely to 
be picked up; and I emphasised that the Allies could 
well afford to lose a ship for every submarine sunk. 

In the matter of colouring, I thought the upper works 
of these destroyers should have been painted a lighter 
grey than their hulls, and the top-masts should be 
lowered if possible, for these destroyers were rather 
lofty and their tall top-masts served to attract attention. 
This was before the days when we employed different 
colour schemes for camouflaging to any great extent. 

I am afraid I was also guilty of suggesting that small 
arms should be in a very accessible place in fine weather, 
and ready for instant use. This may be considered a 
little unnecessary in the Atlantic patrol, where we were 
a long way from the enemy shores, but I always thought 
it better to be prepared to kill Germans who might sud- 
denly be found on the deck of a submarine on the sur- 
face at night. This remark applied also to machine- 
guns, where they were carried. 

I did not think that the American officers and men 
had adequate clothing at this time, to keep them warm 
and comfortable in bad weather; nor were they well sup- 
plied with leather sea boots. I thought the Americans 
wore insufficient under-clothing, too, which would lead 
them into all sorts of trouble later on, when they had 




X 



o 



Q 
< 

w 

CO 



KEEPING THE SEAS 153 

to face the rigours of the damp climate hereabouts; 
besides which, nobody can do his work properly at sea 
unless he is well clad. 

I suggested that paper work should be reduced to a 
minimum, but in the elimination of unnecessary corres- 
pondence I think the U.S. naval forces had us well 
beaten at all times. Apropos of this subject, I noticed 
that every American destroyer carried a yeoman, who 
acted as stenographer and clerk; much of the C.O.'s 
time was saved by his employment, and the introduction 
of ratings skilled in shorthand would be an asset for our 
own destroyers and small craft. It is my experience that 
conscientious officers waste, I will not say spend, a great 
deal of their time over correspondence and office work 
which probably would be better done if the American 
system were employed. I myself have never treated 
office work very seriously during the war, although I 
must confess I have often been worried and hampered 
by it. An instance: After being nine or ten nights 
at sea in succession, I had secured my destroyer to the 
buoy in Dover Harbour, gone down to my cabin, where 
I thawed myself out with a cup of boiling cocoa, and then 
turned into my bunk to sleep during the forenoon. I 
had just dozed off when a signalman came in and read 
out, " From Captain (D) to Broke. Report by signal 

why you have not complied with my ," 

referring to some order that had evidently been over- 
looked. I was very sleepy, but my conscience was fairly 
clear, since I never let the correspondence accumulate. 
I could not think what it referred to and so I said, 
" I will answer it when I have had a couple of hours' 
sleep," for it was evidently not important. I had no 
sooner fallen asleep, or so it seemed to me, when down 



154 KEEPING THE SEAS 

came the signalman again with a somewhat rude re- 
minder from Captain (D). So I got out of bed and 
hunted out the order, which I found stated that a report 
was to be sent in every month giving the amount of 
ammunition above 4-in. expended by the vessels under 
the Captain (D's) orders. I had read the order to mean 
the Swift and the small monitors which were armed 
with 7.5-inch and 9.2-inch guns, and had therefore paid 
no attention, but as I had twice been woken up I decided 
to go ashore and protest, for I had not really deserved 
to be shaken up in this way for no reason whatever. 
Accordingly I went to Captain (D's) office, full of fury 
and ready to explain that since my ship carried no guns 
bigger than a 4-inch, we had not expended ammunition 
of a greater size, and that on behalf of myself and 
others who might be so disturbed in the few quiet hours 
we got during the long dark night patrol this damn non- 
sense should cease. But I found that it was not Captain 
(D) who had sent the signal, but a long white-faced 
lanky gentleman with well oiled hair, who acted as his 
secretary. Since this time I have paid less attention 
than ever to paper work in destroyers, realising that 
half the rude signals and urgent memos come from peo- 
ple who have nothing better to do, rather than directly 
from the powers that be. 

All service in light craft, which ships are commanded 
by youngsters, tends towards a kind of destroyer Bol- 
shevism; most of us did our paper work with a fair 
degree of conscientiousness, but one destroyer officer 
who once served in the Dover Patrol developed into a 
perfect Trotsky; he never answered a letter; he never 
read an order, and moreover he prevented anybody else 
in his ship from paying any attention to the accumulating 



KEEPING THE SEAS 155 

enquiries as to why this or that had not been done. He 
was tolerated for some time because he had a happy 
knack of always getting there when it was necessary to 
be on the spot. However, those in the pay, victualling 
and discipline offices eventually united, very properly 
it is true, and brought about his downfall, for the sake 
of law and order. A successor was appointed, who 
boarded the " Unnamed One's " craft. Mr. Nameless 
conducted him round the beautifully clean and orderly 
little ship, if it is possible to have a thirty-knotter beauti- 
fully clean and orderly in war time. The little destroyer 
was obviously efficient and the newcomer, taking her 
at face value, consented to assume that the confidential 
books were as they should be, when the captain sud- 
denly threw open a little trap hatch on the deck abaft 
the ward room, and, taking from his pocket a bundle 
of weekly orders, he slung them down with a swish, 
slammed the hatch and said, " If you want any orders, 
letters or instructions, you will find them all down there. 
I never read them, but I take care not to lose them. 
They go down directly they come." 

Although I do not pretend to set this young gentleman 
up as an example, I do consider that we have been 
unnecessarily handicapped by paper work in war time, 
and much time might have been saved by the inclusion 
of a stenographer in every destroyer's complement, who 
could have shepherded the papers and reduced them to 
the aforesaid law and order. 

Pardon the digression, and return to my friends 
from the States. I also suggested to the Americans that 
when in Berehaven or other such places, the crew should 
be encouraged as much as possible to get physical exer- 
cise and fresh air. This may sound rather nonsense, but 



156 KEEPING THE SEAS 

a destroyer in bad weather is not the place to get fresh 
air, except for those on the bridge, for the decks are 
awash and heavy seas break over them, making it impos- 
sible for people to remain on deck, and the fug and 
frowst in all torpedo craft, down below, would take 
more than pen and paper to describe. 

I gave them our own gun and torpedo stations for 
fighting patrol work, which were very good since they 
were the outcome of many officers' experience for several 
years of war. Amongst other things I advised them to 
zig-zag as much as possible when steaming under 18 
knots; Taussig and I both agreed that during the hours 
of darkness, and particularly during twilight hours, 
either the captain or the second in command should be 
on the bridge in addition to the officer of the watch; this 
being at a time when the submarine could see a de- 
stroyer without being seen herself, and therefore the 
most dangerous time for the T.B.D. I reminded my 
friend about taking advantage of the moon and sun, 
with reference to placing vessels in position for at- 
tacking. 

I noticed that American destroyers were supplied with 
light yellow or neutral shades over their prismatic 
binoculars, which made it possible to see extremely well 
when looking in the direction of the sun. We have not 
this arrangement fitted to our glasses, but it is, I think, 
a good thing to make use of. 

Our fellows in the Dover Patrol got very clever at 
snap-shot firing; driftwood or other floating wreckage, 
which was constantly met with, would be used as a tar- 
get, and I know in the U.S.S. JFadszvorth the officers 
were always practising their men in this way. I also 
advised them to take constant advantage of the aiming 



KEEPING THE SEAS 157 

rifles on their guns, to practise the crews quickly at 
coming into action. I suggested to them occasionally 
firing off their guns to exercise the crew and keep them 
from being gun-shy. There were a certain number of 
very young hands in the United States destroyers, and 
like our own youngsters, they probably suffered from 
gun-shyness to begin with. 

I remember Admiral Bayly gave the American of- 
ficers some very good hints with reference to closing tor- 
pedoed or sinking ships, and he told them many little 
stories concerning survivors. I remember he mentioned 
picking up, with the Adventure, a crowd of survivors 
from a sloop which had been torpedoed. The men had 
got on to the upper of two Carley floats, which had 
stuck together, and they were able to keep quite dry; in 
fact, if I remember rightly, when picked up after being 
two or three days at sea, one of these men was playing 
a mandoline and the other the good old sea-service 
mouth organ. It was, of course, summer weather. 

It would be well to insert a little story I heard about 
Admiral Sir Lewis Bayly, concerning the unrest in south- 
west Ireland at the time of which I am writing. I give 
it without prejudice — it may not even be true. 

The Mayor of Cork asked that his city should be 
placed out of bounds to British and American sailors. 
Cork was not interested in the Allied navies, and did not 
wish to have our sailors in her city, at least that is how 
the story goes. But the development of Queenstown as 
a naval base brought more and more money to the port 
until, after the Americans had settled down, it almost 
became " their city "; money was spent most lavishly in 
Queenstown by Uncle Sam's boys, and the residents in 
consequence grew richer and richer, until their neigh- 



158 KEEPING THE SEAS 

bours in the larger city of Cork were worked up to a 
splendid pitch of jealousy. The Mayor, supported by 
sundry members of the corporation, visited the Naval 
Commander-in-Chief at Admiralty House by appoint- 
ment; according to the story, which was told me by an 
American naval officer, the following dialogue ensued: — 

Uncle Lewis (On the mayoral party entering the 
room) : Sit down. 

Mayor: On behalf of the city of Cork I ask you, 
Admiral, to cancel your order that Cork should be out 
of bounds to officers and men of the British and U.S. 
naval forces. 

Uncle Lewis (looking severely at the Mayor) : Can 
you guarantee that officers and men of the British naval 
forces can visit Cork and walk through the streets with- 
out being insulted? 

Mayor: I can not. 

Uncle Lewis: Can you guarantee that officers and 
men of the U.S. naval forces can visit Cork and walk 
through the streets without being insulted? 

Mayor: I can not. 

Uncle Lewis: Can you guarantee that if the National 
Anthem is played in theatres and places of amusement 
in the presence of British officers and men, that the 
citizens of Cork will respect it and not receive it with 
booing and hissing? 

Mayor: I can not. 

Uncle Lewis: Can you guarantee that if the National 
Anthem of the United States of America is played in 
theatres and places of amusement in the presence of 
officers and men of the U.S. naval forces, that the cit- 
izens of Cork will respect it and not receive it with 
booing and hissing? 



KEEPING THE SEAS 159 

Mayor: I can not. 

Uncle Lewis (throwing the door open, in a voice of 
thunder) : Good-day. 

Outside Admiralty House a number of friends and 
others interested in the deputation awaited, hopefully 
anticipating that the attractions of Cork would result 
in the lavish expenditure of money by the naval units, 
which it was supposed would shortly re-visit the city; 
they eagerly crowded round the Mayor, and one amongst 
them anxiously asked the Mayor to inform them of the 
results of the interview. The Mayor looked his in- 
terrogator straight in the face and replied: "Begorrah! 
We were lucky to escape with our loives." 

It is interesting to note that the Americans launched 
over 60 magnificent sea-going destroyers in the year 
and a half of war which followed the epoch of this 
chapter, compared with a matter of four or five in 19 14. 

Before closing this chapter it might be mentioned that 
a splendid scheme for entertainment of the seamen was 
adopted by the Americans. The old swimming-bath at 
Queenstown was taken over and fitted up as a U.S. 
naval club, and an excellent temporary theatre was con- 
structed where kinema exhibitions were held nightly, the 
films being displayed to the enlivening music of the 
" Dixies " naval band. Almost every variety of enter- 
tainment was catered for by the American Chief-of-Staff 
and his assistants. At this club one could get refresh- 
ments, which varied from an ice cream soda to a seven- 
course dinner, at almost cost price. I am bound to say 
that the comforts of the American sailors were infinitely 
better studied than those of the British blue. When one 
considers the difference in the pay of the two navies one 
cannot help an uneasy feeling that we have not done 



160 KEEPING THE SEAS 

enough for our own men. On the other hand, it struck 
me in the course of conversation that American sailors 
were no more contented than the British with their lot. 
I always regretted that American destroyers got no 
fighting against above-water craft, for I could well have 
pictured them going into action, firm of purpose, smil- 
ing, undaunted and unafraid, and I remember well how 
some of them begged me to use my influence to get them 
employed on the Belgian coast to give them this fighting 
chance. By virtue of the Allied destroyer distribution, 
my friends were always kept to the duller work of polic- 
ing the ocean far away from the North Sea, so that 
Allied and neutral merchant ships might ply their way in 
comparative freedom from attack. In doing this, al- 
though only occasional submarine hunts enlivened their 
patrol, when the American destroyers finally sailed for 
their home ports at the termination of hostilities, their 
captains, officers and men could proudly hold up their 
heads, content with the knowledge that they had done 
real work in protecting the sea-borne supplies which 
gave strength and final victory to the nations who were 
staking their all for right and democracy. 



CHAPTER XI 

BlKKY AND THE BlG GUNS 

"THE TROUBLESOME TARGET" 

Now this is the troublesome target. 

And this is the Hun who lived in the troublesome target. 

And this is the gun that straffed the Hun who lived in the trouble- 
some target. 

This is the tractor with plenty of power that goes about four miles 
an hour that mounted the gun that straffed the Hun that lived 
in the troublesome target. 

This is the shot the sailor got and put on the tractor with plenty 
of power that goes about four miles an hour that mounted the 
gun that straffed the Hun that lived in the troublesome target. 

This is the " Pod " that struck in the sod to spot the shot the sailors 
got and put on the tractor with plenty of power that goes about 
four miles an hour that mounted the gun that straffed the Hun 
that lived in the troublesome target. 

Now this is old Bick, who's as fat as a tick, who sits on the pod that 
stuck in the sod to spot the shot the sailor got and put on the 
tractor with plenty of power that goes about four miles an hour 
that mounted the gun that straffed the Hun that lived in the 
troublesome target. 

This is the fall of the first cannon ball as seen by old Bick who's as 
fat as a tick who sits on the pod that stuck in the sod to spot 
the shot the sailor got and put on the tractor with plenty of power 
that goes about four miles an hour that mounted the gun that 
straffed the Hun that lived in the troublesome target. 

'' Nubian Nonsense " 

The Germans, as we know, were great believers in 
mounting very heavy guns at odd spots along the Belgian 
coast and elsewhere, for the purpose of their straffing 
and general terrorisation schemes. These heavy gun 
batteries were sufficiently new and powerful to keep the 

11 161 



i62 KEEPING THE SEAS 

attacking monitors from seriously interfering with the 
Germans, and by day the British naval forces on the 
Belgian coasts were unable to approach, if the weather 
was clear, to within ten miles, after the operations con- 
ducted by Admirals Hood and Bacon in 19 14-15. 

In October, 19 15, Commander Bickford and Lieu- 
tenant-Commander Lewin were selected by Admiral 
Bacon to take charge of the mounting and transport of 
heavy naval guns for counter-battery work against the 
Germans near the coast. 

In the autumn of 191 5 it was extremely difficult to 
obtain heavy guns, for our output of guns and munitions 
was not then great enough to supply at once all the 
pieces that were needed by those commanding in the vari- 
ous theatres of war. Admiral Bacon realised this more 
than most people and, without troubling the Admiralty 
to give him the weapons he required for shore use, he 
dismounted at Dover three Mark VI. 9.2-inch 22-ton 
guns from the three small " M " class monitors which 
were armed with these old-fashioned cannon. The mon- 
itors of this class were of very little use on the coast, ex- 
cept for the protection of the auxiliary patrols against a 
rush attack by above-water craft; they were of very frail 
construction, unsuitable for bombarding from a moving 
platform a fixed target in a well protected position. At 
the best of times they could only have been used for 
plastering large areas on account of the difficulty of 
accurate ranging when mounted on the little vessels. 

Accordingly, two of these guns were lifted out and 
placed ashore at Dunkirk, while one was taken ashore at 
Dover, and there Commander Bickford practised mount- 
ing it under conditions as nearly as possible similar to 
those which obtained in the dunes " over the way." 



KEEPING THE SEAS 163 

This was a piece of forethought on the part of Admiral 
Bacon to avoid dumping the guns, gear and mounting, 
over in Belgium without any preliminary training and 
knowledge on the part of those who were to establish 
them. " Old Bick " was a sailor, and of no man that I 
have met can it be more truly said that " every hair of 
his head and beard was a rope yarn." He was a splendid 
seaman and, though he knew nothing whatever about 
mounting guns or shore artillery work when he joined 
Admiral Bacon's command, by exercising his seamanlike 
qualities and common-sense, he learnt all that there was 
to be learnt in this connection. He and Lewin together 
played with those 9.2's as though they were but the 
little 9-pounder muzzle-loaders, which twenty years ago, 
used to be displayed with exhibition naval guns' crews 
in the Royal Military Tournament at Islington. 

For artillerymen, the crews of the " Baby Monitors " 
were used; the transport gear was literally begged, bor- 
rowed and stolen from the little dockyard at Dover and 
from the stores of the 15-inch howitzer batteries in 
France. Two Foster-Daimler naval tractors and eight 
trucks were obtained from the R.M.A. Depot at Eastney 
and, by improvising the stolen (or shall we say "found") 
timber, the guns were jacked, parbuckled, rolled, skidded 
and levered up on to the spare 15-inch howitzer trucks. 

The officers and men who were to work these guns 
were practised under Admiral Bacon's supervision until 
they were drill perfect in mounting and dismounting 
them, but there was far more to be done in respect of 
these guns than many a man who saw them at Dover 
thought of. 

Four 9.2's were eventually mounted in the dunes be- 
tween Nieuport Bains and Oost Dunkirk Bains. At 



1 64 KEEPING THE SEAS 

first they were unprotected but, as may be expected, 
the Huns soon found them out, and the consequent 
staffing to which the guns and their crews were subjected, 
made it imperative that shell-proof emplacements should 
be constructed. 

The crews lived in camps in the neighbourhood of 
their guns, which rejoiced in the names of " Lewin 
Camp," " Barbara Camp," " Halahan's Camp," and so 
forth, according to the fancy of the deity then in being in 
this sandy, wind and shell-swept little new naval world. 

Parts of the crews of the little monitors continued 
with the guns until they were replaced by Royal Marine 
units later in the war. The naval counter-battering per- 
formed by the 9.2's was of great assistance to the French 
artillery, and the portion of the army holding that sec- 
tor of the line. 

Early in 19 15, Admiral Bacon, produced a scheme for 
knocking out the " Tirpitz " battery of four 11-inch 
guns, which had caused great annoyance to the monitors 
and upset the Admiral's programme for bombarding 
from the sea. His plan was, originally, to mount a 12- 
inch gun on the dunes near Oost Dunkirk, where it would 
have a range of 38,000 yards, and be able to answer our 
enemy with the same precision which the Germans them- 
selves had attained. Unfortunately the position selected 
was well within the range of the heavy German how- 
itzers, placed behind their trenches, and during the 
course of construction, in spite of very good camouflage, 
the position was located, heavily shelled and practically 
destroyed. Old Bick took it as a matter of course; he 
was entirely unperturbed and, once the Admiral had 
decided on a new position, he drilled his minions into 
their usual high state of efficiency in gun-mounting with 



KEEPING THE SEAS 165 

a new piece, a 1 2-inch Mark X Dreadnought type of 
gun. It weighed 58 tons, while the mounting and slide 
together weighed another 53 tons. All of this "Old 
Bick" conveyed along the road of France and Belgium in 
a way that excited the admiration of the inhabitants. The 
great weight of gun and mounting was only moved by 
night, but on the occasion when the final move up of the 
gun to its new position took place, Commander Bick- 
f ord transported the 1 2-inch weapon sixteen miles dur- 
ing a single night. 

It was a wonderful sight for those who peered from 
their windows, in their night-caps, in the little village of 
Ghiveldt. " Old Bick " in drab-coloured fear-nought 
coat, smothered with gun grease and what not, a rum 
bottle sticking out of one pocket, (let us hope it was 
filled with tea) ; from the other pocket a half loaf of 
bread, with slabs of meat and chunks of cheese, which 
comprised his field service larder; dozens of little 
squashed " Three Castles " cigarettes filling all the odd 
pocket corners ! " Old Bick," who was a great favourite 
among the Dover destroyer crowd, knew no difference 
between night and day, he never seemed to sleep. He 
was quite unable to carry a stock of clothes around, 
never being in the same place for more than a matter 
of hours at a time. He had a happy knack of always 
being exactly on the spot. His men loved him; his 
chauffeur was a slave to him. And this wicked old 
Bluebird is actually credited with having killed three 
chauffeurs in the war. The Foster-Daimler drivers 
would work their hearts out for their boss, and once a 
rating had been enrolled in the " Bickford Joy-ride 
Army," he was lost to civilisation, and whatever unit 
he belonged to lost touch with him for ever. 



1 66 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Two of the tractors were called " Keep Smiling " 
and " Here I am," the third one christened itself 
" Bicky's Baby," although their official designations 
were really O.H.M.S. " 33," " 43," and " 29." 

Incidentally, Bicky is still lost somewhere in France 
or Belgium in 19 19. Long after the war is finished and 
men have gone back to the soil; long after the French 
children who greeted him with shouts and cadged his 
cigarettes have grown up, married and perhaps become 
mothers, Old Bick is still on the other side. Admiralty 
clerks in vain scratch their heads and work through piles 
of papers to trace his whereabouts; Lords of the Ad- 
miralty angrily order his withdrawal, but none of their 
efforts ever trouble Bicky; he has been so lost and sub- 
merged in the labyrinth of sand dunes, battered trenches, 
wrecked lighthouses, broken piers, wayside cafes and 
decrepit picture palaces, that he has for ever established 
his position as uncrowned King of Flanders. Expedi- 
tions have been sent out in vain to overcome and capture 
him in his pirate stronghold, officers of proved gal- 
lantry and ability have attempted to track him down. 
Many of them came in contact with him and thought 
they had got their bird, but no, when safely in their 
custody, as they foolishly imagined, they found, not 
Bicky, but only his empty rum bottle. 

At the time of writing I have been a month in Ostend 
and, trading on my friendship, I have made an attempt 
to secure him. I have collected a few satellites of proved 
and tried vicious habits to help me capture Bicky, but, 
like other men who have attempted this vain conquest 
I have fallen as it were a shapeless, battered mass, for 
Bicky has grown fatter than ever, and when I rushed 
him and attempted to capture, for trial, promotion or 



KEEPING THE SEAS 167 

honour, he merely fell out of his motor-car and rolled on 
me. When I recovered, Bicky had left Belgium and 
re-established himself in one of his pirate haunts on the 
outskirts of Dunkirk. 

It is no good, and as long as life remains in him, this 
monster will haunt the coast roads of France and Flan- 
ders; fortunately, he is a good ghost, and beyond kill- 
ing chauffeurs, pigs and chickens with his motor-car, 
he has never been known to say an unkind word, to 
refuse a drink or to refuse hospitality to any stranded 
officer or man wearing an Allied uniform. But I must 
get back to the guns. 

During the transport of the heavies, screwing up and 
wedging frequently had to be resorted to, when the 
roads gave way, which they often did, and the wheels 
of the gun trucks sank deeply into the mud they had to 
be jacked and timbered underneath. The party also 
had to reinforce bridges to carry the weight. 

A little story was told me by Bickford, which I am 
bound to include here, although it sounds better in the 
telling than actually in the reading. 

Old Bick was celebrating the Armistice at the newly- 
inaugurated officers' club in Dunkirk. The officer who 
was running the club, Major Magher, was an old Indian 
man, and having the Anglo-Indian taste for curry, this 
dish frequently appeared on the club menu. Old Bick 
saw the curry and knowing that all the attendant delica- 
cies were available, thanks to Magher, he told the 
demure little French waitress to bring him some Bombay 
duck. " Oui, monsieur" the little girl replied, and 
daintily tripped away, to re-appear presently with a bot- 
tle of good wine. Bicky preferred the wine of Scotland 
to the red wine of the country, but he had not called for 



1 68 KEEPING THE SEAS 

wine; " I didn't ask for this," he exclaimed. "Mais, 
oui, monsieur. Regardez," ventured the little girl, and 
pointing to the inscription on the label, added, " Mais, 
vraiment. C est le ' bon Medoc' " 

But now of the Dominion Battery, as it was eventu- 
ally christened, owing to the assistance given by members 
of the Overseas Canadian Railway Construction Corps. 
The gun was mounted near Adinkerke, in the middle of 
some fields of the type so familiar to those who knew 
the peaceful Belgium of pre-war time. Long before the 
gun was mounted, a dummy barn was constructed over 
the platform and disguised in futurist colours which 
made it extremely difficult to distinguish by aerial ob- 
servation from the homesteads around. It really looked 
like a portion of the farm Saint Joseph. 

It was my privilege to be taken out to this battery 
when it was nearing its final stages of completion. I had 
brought the Admiral over in the Crusader to inspect the 
handiwork of the barnacled Bickford and his web-footed 
companions, who had temporarily forsaken the sea in 
their eagerness to inflict material damage on the Boches. 
The sailor loves to get away on detached service where, 
like Old Bick, he can discard the little niceties of uni- 
form, wear daisies in his hat, smoke to his heart's con- 
tent whilst working, and generally drift into that state 
in which Old Bick himself delighted to revel. He 
certainly never called his men to account for being im- 
properly dressed; how could he? 

It was a great picnic for everybody concerned in spite 
of the hard work entailed and the long hours. It was 
impossible for German observers to see the gigantic 
1 2-inch gun, for the breech and mounting were covered 
in by the woodwork of the dummy barn, while the muz- 




J 



KEEPING THE SEAS 169 

zle itself was hidden by imitation tiles painted on can- 
vas which could be withdrawn by spilling lines when 
getting ready for action. 

A few Belgian peasants were working in the fields 
around when I visited the gun in the summer of 19 16 
and renewed my acquaintance with that original char- 
acter who figures as the hero of this chapter. I remem- 
ber how glad I was to see him, and I do not think he had 
forgotten me after I had picked him off his tripod near 
Ostend, the year before. Perhaps he had grown a little 
younger, his smile was broader and his body no more 
slender; but he was the same tough block of a man who 
feared nothing and nobody on earth, with the exception 
of Admiral Bacon. Perhaps Admiral Bacon will be sent 
out to gather him back to his proper side of the Channel 
when all other men's attempts have failed. 

Everything seemed to go so well and smoothly under 
Bickford's charge; he had a number of clever and ener- 
getic helpers, including two whom I met that day, Major 
Harvey, of the Canadian Royal Engineers, and Lieut. 
Flint, belonging to the same Corps. It was the first 
holiday in the country I had had in the war, and I shall 
never forget how thoroughly I enjoyed strolling around 
the grass, flax, beet, and bean fields, that were quite 
unlike anything to do with hating or war. The gun 
itself seemed horribly out of place with its poultry 
yard adjacent. Long-eared Belgian dogs and mangy 
looking chickens strutted about amongst the large gird- 
ers which formed the gun platform. Everybody had 
a broad grin on his face, and the warm rays of the 
sun streamed down upon us all and gave us a feel- 
ing of peace. We were brought back to earth rather 
suddenly, however, for the day I paid my respects to 



170 KEEPING THE SEAS 

the Dominion Battery was after it had done a con- 
siderable amount of firing and the Hun had fairly well 
located its position. Suddenly two huge ii-inch shells 
flopped down among the beans and beetroot, the mangy 
chickens fluttered in startled fashion to the shelter of 
the farm pig-sties, the long-eared dogs looked anxiously 
at the sailors. The one great being whom we all feared 
ceased cooking his omelette on the cordite cases, and 
the mild summer feeling of peace gave place to one of 
apprehension. Phosphorous smoke was quickly gen- 
erated, and a dense fog soon blotted out the battery 
from observation; we, the joy-riders, returned to our 
cars and sped away, leaving Old Bick to deal as best he 
could with the very expert German artilleryman who 
had found him out once more. 

The first rounds fired from this gun were loosed off 
on Dominion Day, September 3rd, 19 16. They were 
two shrapnel shells, which were fired with full charges 
for the purpose of testing the gun and platform. Un- 
fortunately, the second round, by some mistake, was not 
one of those which had been gauged for firing; it left the 
gun, but the head of the shell flew off and the body was 
hurled through the air, making a noise like an express 
train as it somersaulted, before eventually breaking up 
and scattering its fragments over the fair fields of Bel- 
gium. A Belgian General brought back the head of the 
projectile the following day; it had landed in a field 
three miles away without, I am glad to say, doing any 
damage. The Belgian General, having satisfied himself 
that it belonged to the Dominion gun, insisted on retain- 
ing it as a souvenir. He wished those at the battery 
better luck in future and then withdrew. 

The subsequent efforts of the Dominion battery left 



KEEPING THE SEAS 171 

nothing to be desired. The " Tirpitz " battery was 
straffed unmercifully, and we have every reason to be- 
lieve that one of the big naval guns was knocked out 
and another seriously damaged. We know from prison- 
ers' information that one of these guns burst, but 
whether it was hitting back at the Dominion battery or 
firing at the monitor we do not really know. Our infor- 
mation, from Belgian local sources, shows pretty con- 
clusively that the first shell fired by the Dominion gun 
at the Tirpitz battery caused the destruction of five-and- 
twenty German soldiers working on the emplacement. 

Admiral Bacon frequently visited the naval guns in 
Belgium, and on the occasion of the first bombardment 
of the Tirpitz battery, he employed a ruse which may 
or may not have been successful, but which lacked noth- 
ing in originality. 

Everything being in readiness with the 12-inch guns 
at Dominion Camp, an old monitor appeared off the 
coast, disguised with an extra funnel and in other ways. 
This ship opened fire with blank rounds, when she was 
outside the long range of the shore batteries. The exact 
times for firing the individual rounds had been pre- 
arranged, and each time that a blank charge was fired 
from the ship, the 12-inch shore gun fired a real shell. 
As stated, our 12-inch naval gun ashore was thus able 
to throw a certain number of shells right into the Tir- 
pitz battery. Our spotting was done from the shore 
observation stations and confirmed by aeroplane spot- 
ting; from the aerial photographs and the Belgian in- 
formation we learned that this bombardment was suc- 
cessful in destroying the mounting of one gun at least. 

Two more 12-inch guns of a slightly, improved pat- 
tern, capable of being elevated to 45 degress, were sub- 



172 KEEPING THE SEAS 

sequently handed over to the tender mercies of Com- 
mander Bickford and his men for transport and mount- 
ing. They were put on board the monitor General 
Crauford at Chatham and carried to Dunkirk, where 
there were cranes capable of lifting these huge weights; 
a wooden skid was built from the upper deck of the 
monitor down to the quayside, the guns themselves were 
packed round, so that they were cylindrical in shape for 
the greater part of their length, and then eased down 
the skids on the quay. Another skid was here fixed up, 
leading from the quay to the road trucks, and the big 
guns were taken, one at a time, to their selected posi- 
tions in Belgium. One of these later guns was used 
almost entirely for counter battery work against the 
15-inch guns at Langenbaum. 

In addition to the naval guns already mentioned, 
three 9.2-inch, mark X, weighing 29 tons, were moved 
to positions on the sand dunes, and 7.5-inch naval guns 
were mounted in the vicinity of Nieuport, and finally 
two mark VIII 9.2-inch 24-ton guns, originally com- 
prising the heavy armament of H.M.S. Terrible, were 
mounted at Oost Dunkirk; these were removed when it 
was expected that the country would be flooded by the 
Allies in order to prevent the Germans from advancing 
further, which they then looked like doing. 

The 9.2-inch guns spoken about at the beginning of 
this chapter, got the highest number of marks for getting 
nearer the enemy than any other naval gun, for the 
Germans advanced to within 900 yards of their actual 
position, and they had a lonely time on one occasion, 
when their only artillery support was one machine-gun 
mounted on a sand dune to the rear of them. Old Bick 
was in no way perturbed; once the decision had been 



KEEPING THE SEAS 173 

given to dismount the gun, he rolled up to their emplace- 
ment in a Lancia Boxcar tender, with his rum bottle, 
sandwiches and impedimenta, and established himself 
with a view to getting busy. The enemy no sooner 
observed Old Bick's car than they commenced a mur- 
derous straffing with 4.1-inch shells, but the car, like 
Old Bick, had a charmed life, and although 43 shells 
were squirted at the lonely vehicle, not one succeeded in 
doing it any injury worth commenting on. Old Bick 
waited till dusk and then commenced to dig it out of the 
sand heaps which had been knocked up about it by the 
exploding shells. During the hours of darkness the 
marines, who were then manning these guns, constructed 
a road of sleepers and, four days after they arrived, 
the two guns were safely withdrawn. The second gun 
was only got away at daybreak, and those working about 
I it were lucky to escape being shelled, for the enemy, 
with their military thoroughness, always had an obser- 
vation balloon out with the first rays of light to report 
1 on anything that could be seen moving behind our lines. 
This day the Hun balloon observer was slightly behind 
time; the shelling came all right, plastering the roadway 
just as Old Bick toddled after the retreating muzzle 
(and the whole train of comics disappeared round a 
friendly corner in the Aeolian Road, which leads to 
Nieuport and Oost Dunkirk. 

These remarks, which are not meant to be historical, 
would not be complete without a reference to the late 
Commander H. C. Halahan, D.S.O., who was navally in 
charge of the bombarding guns and their crews. This 
officer, who it will be remembered, lost his life at Zee- 
brugge Mole when he was about to land in charge of the 
demolition party, inspired his men with confidence, and 



i 7 4 KEEPING THE SEAS 

ran the naval batteries, which were under the Dover 
Admiral's command, in a manner which the Admiral 
officially reported as " deserving of the highest praise." 

The scope of this book does not permit me to dwell 
much on the individual effort of all those who served 
ashore on the Belgian coast. I have expanded on the 
subject of Old Bick because his whole character and 
procedure invited description, for the benefit of those 
who do not go down to the sea in ships, and only have 
seen brass-bound sailors in beautiful rigging, adorning 
such places as the Carlton and Savoy. 

Bicky was truly the naval equivalent for Bairns- 
father's " Old Bill." 



CHAPTER XII 

The R.N.A.S., More Coast Watching, Mine 
Laying and Skirmishing 



Who is he who lives in Dover, 

He who always goes by car, 
Even though he only travels 

A hundred yards to find a bar? 

Beside a shed he's seen on Sundays, 
Weirdly clothed and shouting loud. 

All his faithful minions round him, 
Waiting for a decent crowd. 

When the road is black with people, 

They open doors which groan and grunt, 

Carry forth their wondrous plaything, 
Wind it up upon the front. 

When the crowd begins to dwindle, 

Then thej' lift it shoulder high, 
All the people start to whisper, 

"Do you think he's going to fly?" 

But they're doomed to disappointment, 

The bird is put back in its cage, 
Doors are shut and barred and bolted, 

All have earned their daily wage- 
Later on you'll hear his story, 

How he had an awful fight, 
" Met a Prussian at six thousand," 

Then you'll realise he's (deleted by censor). 

Tells you anti-aircraft Archies, 

Smote him with an awful tonk, 
Fuller details he will give you 

If you say, "Is yours a Bronk?" 



175 



176 KEEPING THE SEAS 

His imitation naval rig, 

Does credit to his tailor. 
But still he always must admit, 

He's Really Not a Sailor. 

Note. — All lib«l actions in connection with this, or any other poetical 
efforts, can be settled out of court at eleven a.m. on any day 
during the next stand off. 

'' Nubian Nonsense " 

The above is a page from " Nubian Nonsense." Lieut. 
John I. Hallett, who perpetrated this dreadful libel on 
our gallant Air Service, was one of our best young 
destroyer officers, zealous, full of dash, and gifted with 
perhaps the liveliest imagination of all in the Dover 
family. He never feared to say what he wanted to say 
in his poetry and he sent copies of his poems to all those 
he slandered. I am afraid during his periods of boiler- 
cleaning, he had to cool the wrath of those his pen 
attacked with many an iced " Bronx " cocktail. 

Whenever a hostile aeroplane dropped bombs near 
the Nubian during the time she was commanded by Hal- 
lett, the bird on the wing was sure to get a rude signal 
slowly blinked out from the ship's searchlight. Some of 
these signals I am quite unable to publish, but of others, 
" Killed any women and babies lately, Fritz " ? " How 
many hospitals have you bombed " ? and " Who bombed 
the kindergarten "? are more or less typical. Some of 
these signals the Germans read, for now and again he 
got what the Hun considered appropriate replies, such 
as " Cowards, for firing on German trawlers," " What 
a mess you made at Heligoland." 

We were unfortunate enough to lose Hallett from the 
Dover Patrol about halfway through the war; he was 
appointed away to command a large destroyer, which 
was to attend on our submarines operating near the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 177 

German coasts. He certainly profited by his new ap- 
pointment, and soon won his D.S.O. 

In spite of Hallett's poem, we in the Dover Patrol 
were quick to recognise the magnificent development of 
the R.N.A.S. Nothing ever happened on the Dunkirk 
side in the way of German offensive from the air, with- 
out the fiercest of counter attacks Our fellows were 
always up, and by 19 17 day air attacks by the Germans 
were nearly a thing of the past. The enemy aeroplanes 
were literally chased from the skies. There were, of 
course, the occasional day raids made on London by 
large squadrons of aeroplanes, when Dover and Rams- 
gate both got the bombs that were remaining, but after 
all, what did this amount to? The results, when spread 
out, did not show much for the year. Our force was not 
as efficient as that of the Germans in the first three years 
of the war, but in the last two years our machines were 
so much better in construction and armament, that with 
their magnificent personnel, the Hun airmen more than 
found their match. 

In the summer of 1917 we re-established the Belgian 
barrage patrol, and in this year we were almost un- 
molested. It is true the enemy used their machines to 
spot and generally observe us on our coast patrol, but 
they flew to the safety of their aerodromes the moment 
our own machines were sighted. Occasionally they were 
cut off, and I remember seeing a very pretty little fight 
on Sunday, 12th August. An enemy seaplane had 
shadowed the patrol and wirelessed his observations to 
the enemy, and at 5.45 p.m. our aeroplane fleet patrol, 
directed by the ship's gunfire, attacked him and brought 

him down into the sea. The air fleet patrol was most 
12 



178 KEEPING THE SEAS 

efficient and, although we had not enough machines 
available to keep a constant overhead patrol through- 
out the long summer days, our aeroplanes had the happy 
knack of appearing on the scene when their presence 
was most desired. 

Enemy aircraft were fairly frequently brought down. 
I remember on one occasion watching an air fight when 
the German was flopped into the sea. I stood up with 
my division to what I thought was the scene of the 
combat, but could find no trace of the enemy machine, 
pilot or observer. Suddenly, however, a small fast 
single-seater of our own swept down and pirouetted in 
front of my bow, quite close to the sea. The pilot con- 
tinually waved his hands towards the east, so off our 
destroyers sped. Presently we found a wing of the 
enemy machine just sticking out of the water. I de- 
tailed the Nugent to pick up the aircraft if possible, 
which she accordingly did. The pilot was saved, and 
when he appeared on the deck of the Nugent, he looked 
round and said, " The fellow who brought me down is 
in the water over there. Will you save him if you 
can? " We had not observed the downfall of the Eng- 
lish machine, owing to a smoke screen which had been 
put up for a bombardment by the Terror. The 
Nugent's boats soon saved the R.N.A.S. pilot, and in a 
very short time the German and the Englishman were 
sitting at breakfast in the Nugent's wardroom, filling 
themselves out with poached eggs and exchanging lies in 
the most approved fashion. 

This German was responsible for saving our own 
man's life, and I hope he has been treated kindly as a 
prisoner, for from all accounts he was one of those 
rarae aves, a German gentleman. 

The barrage patrol of 191 7 presented features which 



KEEPING THE SEAS 179 

differed only slightly from those of the year before. 
Our two " centre pieces " were the monitors Erebus 
and Terror. They did excellent work, and it might be 
interesting to note their characteristics. They were of 
8,000 tons displacement, 13 knots speed, and burned 
oil fuel, which was a great blessing to their crews. The 
main armament was two 15-inch guns and the secondary 
armament consisted of 4-inch guns, with two 3-inch 
anti-aircraft, besides some lighter pieces. They carried 
305 officers and men each. 

The bombarding work done this summer was more or 
less divided up so that the 1 5-inch monitors, of which we 
now had three, carried out the " set shoots," that is, 
they fired at certain specified targets, such as batteries, 
harbour works and lock gates, while the 12-inch vessels 
were employed as supports for the light forces to rally 
on and for short notice bombardments asked for by the 
Army. We used smoke screens, which were from time 
to time improved. The enemy also established smoke 
screens soon after we got going, and great attention was 
paid to original ranging in order to get round the enemy 
smoke screens; that is, the monitors endeavoured to 
get spotted on the targets before the smoke screen was 
put up. If they succeeded in doing this, they planted 
the requisite number of 15-inch shells on their objective 
and the smoke screen itself was useless. A great deal 
of trouble was taken to practise the aeroplane observers, 
and they themselves had to face a good deal in order 
to spot accurately while under the heavy fire of the 
German anti-aircraft batteries, with which one might 
almost say the Belgian coast was infested. Success in 
the bombardments depended on the ships anchoring in 
their bombarding position without being seen, and open- 



180 KEEPING THE SEAS 

ing fire as quickly as possible before the enemy smoke 
screens had time to spread. It was also advisable for 
the aeroplane to use wireless as little as possible before 
the spotting commenced, and Admiral Bacon impressed 
on aeroplane spotters that they must be always up to 
time in order to signal, " Ready to observe," at the pre- 
arranged time for " Hating." 

I am glad to say that Admiral Bacon used the Broke 
a good deal this summer, and he was always most com- 
municative on the subject of preparedness. He fre- 
quently impressed on those of us with whom he took 
passage that we must while away the monotonous patrol- 
ling hours by thinking out different situations and con- 
tingencies with a view to meeting them quickly and to 
the best advantage. He was always giving destroyer 
captains little bits of advice that made for their efficiency 
and readiness for action. 

The enemy never knew when our bombardments were 
going to take place, and Admiral Bacon had a whole lot 
of dud signals, which he used to make every morning 
at the same hour that aeroplanes would leave the aero- 
drome, to deceive the foe and make them think a bom- 
bardment was about to be perpetrated upon them. I 
cannot exactly remember now whether an aeroplane was 
actually sent up to hover over Ostend or some other 
likely objective. The energy of the pilots combined 
with the ability to climb of the newer machines would 
have made a visit of this sort a mere nothing to the 
R.N.A.S. people, and whereas in 1914 one could always 
see our aeroplanes, from 19 17 onwards they actually 
spotted over Ostend in a reliable manner at a height 
of 17,000 feet. 

I was glad not to be a gunnery lieutenant in a bombard- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 181 

ing monitor, for the allowances and corrections that had 
to be made would have defeated me entirely; wind 
allowances, angular drift and rotation of earth and the 
variety of other corrections discussed by the gunnery 
lieutenants when they came aboard to see the Admiral 
used almost to give me a headache, while the Admiral 
and the knuts would never turn a hair. I used to get 
my own back when I dashed alongside a pier at about 
25 knots and lit a cigarette before going full speed astern 
while the technical experts almost stopped breathing, 
anticipating a dreadful collision. 

The short notice bombardments, which were carried 
out at the Army's request, usually by a pair of 12-inch 
monitors, needed less technique. The targets repre- 
sented coastal areas with certain pre-arranged points as 
centres. The 12-inch monitors by this time had a nomi- 
nal maximum range of 21,300 yards, but to ensure 
spraying the target areas with their 12-inch shells, a 
greater range than 20,000 yards was rarely put on their 
sights, for this particular purpose. 

The " short notice shoots " were usually carried out 
from West Deep, unless the weather was misty and ships 
could creep closer in. The " set shoots " were necessary 
when any wild shooting might have resulted in killing 
civilians, such as the inhabitants of Ostend. Short 
notice bombardments were for straffing German soldiers 
when reported in the areas indicated by our observers. 

After I left the patrol, some of the monitors were 
fitted to carry 18-inch guns, but before this, by the em- 
ployment of long-headed shells, a material increase in 
their gun range was obtained; by fitting a 15-inch shell 
with an 8 calibre-radius head, an increase of range of 
about 3,000 yards could be obtained. I believe we got 



1 82 KEEPING THE SEAS 

this idea from the Germans, who were wonderful ar- 
tillerymen. 

This is not a technical book, it is not intended to be, 
and therefore I do not propose to dwell any more on 
the subject of the monitors' bombardments. I hope and 
believe that our bombardments were successful in doing 
material damage and harassing the Hun, but I should 
very much have liked to see the conditions reversed, and 
Admiral Bacon placed on the Belgian coast to defend it, 
and to have the use of the ports of Ostend and Zee- 
brugge as naval bases. 

The monitors were a good deal under fire from the 
shore batteries,- as were the other vessels of the patrol, 
but the enemy thought more of shooting at the slow- 
moving, heavier ships than of attempting to plunk the 
more quickly moving destroyers. It was no unusual 
thing for us to be straddled at a range of 25,000 yards, 
and the enemy can truly say that this year by day he 
kept us at arm's length By night our coastal motor- 
boats made reconnaissances, and three of them, I re- 
member, lay for three hours within a mile from Zee- 
brugge Harbour on the 5th August, to note if any- 
thing passed in or out during the hours of darkness. 

These little C.M.B.'s, as the coastal motor-boats were 
called, were manned by very dashing young officers, and 
they sank a beautiful destroyer, G.88, by torpedo on 
the night of 7-8th April, 1917. It was a cleverly 
planned little stunt of Admiral Bacon's. He ordered 
Zeebrugge to be heavily bombed, expecting the destroy- 
ers to shove off from the Mole and stand out to sea to 
escape the bombs. Quite in accordance with his wishes, 
they did this, and very foolishly anchored their boats 
when once they were well clear. The C.M.B.'s were 



KEEPING THE SEAS 183 

watching for them, and just as the Hun sailors had 
settled down comfortably for the night, the little motor- 
boats scuttled past them, each loosing off a torpedo. I 
believe two of the torpedoes fired reached their targets, 
one hitting the before-mentioned destroyer amidships 
and sinking her, while another scored a hit without 
achieving quite such a success. 

The C.M.B.'s were often sent up the barrage by 
night with the idea of torpedoing any above-water 
craft or submarines mine-laying in the path of the 
Belgian coast patrol, but nothing ever developed out 
of these particular reconnaissances. 

As in former years, we had our friends the drifters 
along with us, working on the mine nets and keeping 
them intact and dangerous. German destroyers frequent- 
ly attempted to bombard the drifters, but since they sel- 
dom came within 14,000 yards of the mine barrage, no 
damage was inflicted, that I ever heard of, in 19 17. 

German auxiliary craft, probably mine-sweeping 
trawlers, were frequently sighted, and it generally fell 
to the lot of destroyers to fire a few rounds at them 
before they got out of range. It is probable that these 
craft did the damage to the mine nets, which we found 
tampered with soon after they were laid. On one oc- 
casion the Faulknor (Commander Harry Oliphant), 
struck these mine nets near dawn, and a section exploded, 
blowing a big hole in his destroyer. The cynics of the 
Dover Patrol declared he would not get into trouble 
when the matter reached the ears of the authorities be- 
cause they would be so glad to hear that the mine nets 
were really dangerous. There is a good deal in this, 
much more than meets the eye, for as I have said else- 
where, we never feared English mines, and it was really 



1 84 KEEPING THE SEAS 

not until 19 17 that our mines became dangerous to 
friend and foe. 

The Belgian barrage in 1917 was reinforced with a 
type of mine unpleasant to come up against; but the 
description of mine-laying by larger mine-layers is un- 
necessary; it has already been given for 19 16, and after 
all, the operation of mine laying merely consists in tip- 
ping them over the stern. 

We had a very bright sample of officer attached to 
our patrol in the person of Lieut.-Commander Henry 
Forrester, D.S.C., who commanded the mine-laying 
destroyer Meteor. He was absolutely without fear, 
and I personally had more to do with Forrester than 
with many of the other junior officers commanding ships 
of the Dover Patrol. In 19 17 particularly, I used to 
escort him to a position near the Thornton Ridge, where 
we had established a zero mark buoy, from which he 
worked to lay his lines of forty mines or so. A descrip- 
tion of one night will do for all. 

The barrage patrol would withdraw at dusk; the ves- 
sels would anchor in Dunkirk Roads, or to the northward 
of the bank which protects the roads, according to the 
state of tide for the night. A couple of hours before 
high water, the Meteor would take station abeam of the 
commanding flotilla leader and a little procession would 
form up to accompany her to the zero point from which 
she worked to get into position for laying. The flotilla 
leader, with her following of modern destroyers, would 
screen the Meteor up to the Thornton Ridge, or to what- 
ever zero point had been decided on, and then, if no 
enemy vessels were met with, " g " would be flashed 
from Forrester's ship, and he would proceed indepen- 
dently over to the prescribed position where his mines 




o 

K 
u 



H 



< 



KEEPING THE SEAS 185 

would be deposited. Personally, I loved these night 
mine-laying stunts; I had grown tired of seeing the 
enemy on the horizon and never being able to close him, 
on account of our mine barrage, but night time brought 
such boundless possibilities. A new division of destroy- 
ers might come from Wilhelmshaven to join the Flan- 
ders flotilla; a destroyer might be met with, intent on 
bombarding Lowestoft, Aldborough, or some other fish- 
ermen's home; small "A" class T.B.D.'s might be met 
with, or even enemy trawlers : a chance of a scrap we al- 
ways looked forward to, and our personnel was splendid. 
I frankly admit that German gunnery was pretty ad- 
vanced but they never profited sufficiently by it, and they 
were not out to fight. Our fellows certainly were intent 
on fighting, and if I have any criticism to make in this 
little volume on our own sailors, it is that they treated the 
war as a football match, rather than a contest of brains. 
Whenever I accompanied Forrester and his Meteor I 
felt a thrill of pride run through me, for this little red- 
faced man must have crossed and re-crossed the German 
minefields on almost every occasion when he took his 
Meteor up the coast. His work was splendid, and I 
shall never forget the feeling of apprehension which 
crept over me when I saw the little Meteor disappear- 
ing into the darkness. The impression left on my mind 
was a cloud of black smoke, a phosphorescent wake and 
a tin kettle full of men who were keen as mustard; then 
the period of suspense — an hour, possibly two. We 
knew her speed; we knew the position in which the mines 
were to be laid and we therefore anticipated to within 
five minutes the instant of her re-appearance. It all 
comes back to me so vividly. The bow wave reported 
by the look-out, the quickly-flashed challenge and ac- 



1 86 KEEPING THE SEAS 

knowledgment, the feeling of relief and the signal, 
" Speed 20 knots," flashed by the lamp which only 
showed in the direction decided on; the dark shape of 
the Meteor as she took station abeam of the Broke, and 
we swirled away homeward to our anchorage off Dun- 
kirk. We always hoped to meet the enemy, but that 
privilege was denied us, and I feel that privilege will 
for ever be denied us now that Peace terms specify 
such a reduction of German armaments. We can hardly 
hope ever to meet them again. 

Little Forrester was awarded the Distinguished Serv- 
ice Cross for his services; I think he also got the Croix 
de Guerre, and I hope he will receive some other recog- 
nition; he certainly deserves the best that can be given. 

Apropos of night mine-laying, the C.M.B.'s, under 
Lieut. Harrison, did some splendid work. These dimi- 
nutive high-speed craft, which only drew a few inches of 
water, used to place mines in all kinds of unexpected po- 
sitions, and their efforts certainly met with success. It 
was actually not until the end of 19 17 that their mine- 
laying stunts commenced, but they were all worked in 
conjunction with the mine-laying from destroyers. We 
on the coast did a lot of cheerful " hating," whenever 
we had time to spare, and that was fortunately seldom. 
The Dover destroyer birds were a hard-working, sea- 
keeping lot and, without any wish to criticise, moan or 
complain, I think perhaps we did not appreciate suffici- 
ently the services of the colonels, captains, dames D.N.T. 
O.'s, majors and people of all sorts, kinds and descrip- 
tions, who hauled in C.B.'s, C.M.G.'s, and C.B.E.'s 
like mackerels on a trailing line for practically civil serv- 
ices, while we carried out the multifarious duties as- 
signed from time to time to the dirty little vessels 



KEEPING THE SEAS 187 

attached to the Dover Patrol. The " Hates " were 
merely occasional, and they usually were consequent 
upon one night too many at sea. Now that one can look 
back on the war in a light which shows things in a more 
or less correct perspective, one realises that there must 
be a good deal of give and take. I for one, have always, 
felt that those in Admiralty offices, for the most part, 
did their utmost to work for those at sea; it is true that 
they inflicted all kinds of inventions upon us, but there 
was much in their devilish devices when properly em- 
ployed. I do not know who invented the C.M.B., but 
this little vessel was a masterpiece of ingenuity, so much 
so that I almost wept with envy when I saw the first of 
them go over from Dover to Dunkirk; I longed to be a 
lieutenant or a sub, again, for however I may be laughed 
at, I have once been guilty of suggesting to Admiral 
Bacon that I should go with Commander Victor Camp- 
bell to Zeebrugge and attempt to blow up a Hun de- 
stroyer with a Canadian canoe, loaded with the destruc- 
tive charge we had in use in 1916. We probably would 
have pulled it off, but " Fred Karno " took no chances. 

I have no doubt that many people in this war think 
they have not been properly awarded; my bravest action 
during four and a half years of " hating," consisted of 
telling Admiral Bacon and his Chief-of-Staff that they 
were called " Fred Karno " and " Hindenburg " respec- 
tively. The inventor of these pseudonyms was one 
Acting Commander R. H. B. Hammond Chambers, 
another local wit, who rivalled Lieut. Hallett for the 
position of jester-in-chief to the gutter-snipe navy. 

September, 1917, found me the senior destroyer of- 
ficer, for my friend Peck left the Swift to command the 
cruiser Diana just about this time, and some new blood 



1 88 KEEPING THE SEAS 

was injected into the patrol. We were fortunate in ob- 
taining the services of Commander Graham Edwards 
and one or two others of his stamp, who were certainly 
an acquisition to our little fighting force. The Botha 
rejoiced under the leadership of this officer who, apart 
from being a very brave man, possessed a sense of 
humour and a facility for acting funny that would have 
put lines of envy on George Robey and Harry Tate. I 
remember once meeting Edwards in Dunkirk, after I 
had been promoted to the exalted rank of post captain in 
His Majesty's naval service. We had both been up to 
see the Commodore, and having received our orders 
for execution on the morrow, we repaired on board the 
Broke to partake of a little gin. The destroyer Mentor 
was lying alongside; she had tied up to the Broke in my 
absence. Edwards and I were full of beans, and our 
kindly instincts turned to those in the little ship, for we 
now possessed spacious cabins with glorious Chilian 
messtraps, splendid head-room, while from the ceilings 
of the Broke' s and Botha's captains' cabins depended 
silver plated chandeliers that would have put the tawdry 
decorations of the Berlin " Palais de Dance " to shame. 
Viva Chile ! 

We had one gin each and then we collected the 
" Mentors." It will be remembered that this ship, in 
the preceding April, had towed the Broke away from a 
burning enemy destroyer which was in imminent danger 
of blowing up; the opportunity was not to be missed; 
nothing was too good for the " Mentors." 

Edwards, who had a louder voice than even I myself 
possessed, descended into the destroyer's wardroom with 
a terrific and war-like whoop, and invited all and sundry 
to board my flotilla leader. Those in the Mentor's 



KEEPING THE SEAS 189 

ward-room, seeing Commander Edwards and knowing 
the Botha to be in the harbour, naturally imagined that 
it was his ship they were alongside, the two vessels be- 
ing exactly similar. I, myself, was arrayed in a bur- 
berry waterproof, buttoned round my neck, and not be- 
ing recognised as the destroyer king-at-arms of the 
day, the Artificer Engineer pressed me to have a gin. 
I did so, and freely accepted his hospitality, while Ed- 
wards, divesting himself of some of his clothes, gave 
an excellent music-hall performance which he described 
as " Les Arabes." It consisted of wild whoops, can- 
can dances, acrobatic feats and comic songs in jargon 
French imitation; this very creditable, or disgraceful, 
exhibition pleased the "Mentors" no end; they ap- 
plauded him to the skies, loaded him with honours 
in the shape of Gold Flake cigarettes, photographs 
and souvenirs, and finally repaired to my cabin in the 
Broke to partake of a sardine supper. By this time 
Edwards had forgotten whether the Broke was his ship 
or the Botha; he was an inimitable host, and his host- 
like instincts caused him to take charge. He ordered 
drinks and provided food; he bullied my cook and cox- 
swain into a speed and efficiency in waiting they had 
never attained under me and, in short, he thoroughly 
rose to the occasion and gave the " Mentors " the time 
of their lives. 

Commander Edwards, of the Botha, was known in the 
Dover Patrol as " Farver," and he is credited with hav- 
ing led two destroyer divisions into action with the sig- 
nal, " Follow father at 25 knots," flying from his mast- 
head. "Farver" is one of the characters of the British 
Navy. If he is on leave in England and he sees anything 
wearing the uniform of a sailor or a marine, he cannot 



i 9 o KEEPING THE SEAS 

resist the temptation of going up and speaking to him. 
He is often kept at arm's length for a second or two, but 
his personality is so fascinating, his manner so comic, and 
his figure so ridiculous, that the thickest ice is quickly 
broken and " Farver " enlists another recruit in the 
army of his admirers. " Farver " is irresistible. 

It is rather curious that, although his war services 
have been first class, his adventures many, his blunders 
none, " Farver " only possesses two decorations — the 
Legion of Honour and the Croix de Guerre. Of all the 
Allied countries, only France has recognised him, but 
" La Belle France" has handed out to Edwards every- 
thing she can give. Let us hope some other nation will 
follow in her footsteps. 

I am glad to say that this year I was brought into 
very close contact with the French vessels and their 
captains. We usually had three Frenchmen patrolling 
with us, and very good they were. In 1917 I generally 
took out three or four of the following: — Francis 
Gamier, Obusier, Bouclier, Enseigne Roux, Magon, and 
Capitaine Mehl. 

The French destroyer captains were full of pluck, 
keen, skilful and daring. They manoeuvred splendidly, 
and supported the British destroyers in a way that ex- 
cited our greatest admiration. I hope I shall be par- 
doned if I tell of a little meeting in the wardroom of 
the Broke. 

We were about to carry out a " Meteor " mine- 
laying operation, rather more complicated than usual. 
I had explained my plans, which had been discussed by 
all the captains present. One Frenchman, with a long, 
fair moustache, looked very serious throughout, and a 
certain English commander, whose name I dare not 



KEEPING THE SEAS 191 

mention, sat with a face like a scrubbed hammock right 
through the discussion. When it was over and every- 
thing settled, " Scrub-'ammick " turned to the serious 
Frenchman and said, "Aimez-voits les femmes?" The 
reply came out pat, " Je les adore," and the meeting 
broke up in disorder. 

I had the honour of carrying the French Vice-Admiral 
Ronarch, together with Admiral Bacon, when the British 
and French naval forces made their debut on the Belgian 
coast in 19 17, on the occasion of the re-establishment of 
the mine barrage, which was laid, as previously de- 
scribed, to harass the enemy submarines using the Bel- 
gian coast ports. The two Admirals slept the night on 
board after having a little dinner-party in the captain's 
cabin on the Broke, which I attended. The senior naval 
officer at Dunkirk, Captain Bowring, Chief of our Staff, 
and the Admiral's flag lieutenant, were present at the 
dinnner, and about 1 a.m. we moved away to the ap- 
pointed rendezvous for the mine layers and their escorts. 

At dawn we sighted two enemy destroyers and the 
Broke being nearest to them, dashed in to the attack. 
They at once retired, when we loosed off our four guns, 
firing ahead at them, and the Broke went towards the 
drifters re-laying mine nets. The Hun destroyers com- 
menced playing at " Tom Tiddler's ground," and their 
numbers presently increased, but they were not out to 
fight that day, only to observe, unless we gave them a 
chance to strafe the little fishing-boats, which we had no 
intention of doing. 

I may say that on this occasion the Broke carried a 
cinema operator, and also among our passengers was 
Captain Distin Maddick, O.B.E., who was making a 
series of films for propaganda work. I regret that he 



192 KEEPING THE SEAS 

missed the little destroyer brush, as it was quite a pretty 
sight with their shells falling fairly close. Later on in 
the year we had evidence that destroyers were more 
numerous in the German coast ports. 

On the 27th October an attack was made on the 
Botha and her destroyer division, first by one enemy 
seaplane and then by about seventeen enemy aircraft, 
flying from about 4,000 feet. This air attack, was the 
only properly organised one the destroyers had to con- 
tend with. Our anti-aircraft fire had the effect of break- 
ing up the enemy formation, but bombs were dropped 
very close to the ship. Two men in the Botha and 
four in the French destroyer Magon were slightly 
wounded, and a very small hole was made in the 
Magon' s side on the water line, by a splinter. 

The enemy destroyers evidently were working in con- 
junction with the aeroplanes, hoping to demoralise our 
fire during the bomb-dropping interval. A couple of 
hits were obtained on the enemy by the Botha, after 
which he withdrew. The Germans repeated this on the 
following day, when nine aircraft attacked the Kem- 
penfeldt's divisions subsequent to an enemy destroyer 
attack, but they grew tired of this and used their aero- 
planes for bombing towns at night — a more profitable 
amusement and less dangerous to themselves. 

On the 10th October, the Broke sighted a submarine 
and fired at her, but she dived before we could come 
close. 

At the end of October, the enemy submarines laid 
mines across the track of the coast patrol, and in this 
month we had evidence that enemy submarines crossed 
the Belgian Coast barrage. From this time they appear 
to have made certain passages through, and I regret to 



KEEPING THE SEAS 193 

say our mine barrage no longer deterred them from 
entering the Channel. 

The Belgian Coast barrage had certainly been of use, 
for it is commonly known that German submarines, for 
a year or so, generally forsook the Channel route and 
travelled north-about. 

I might mention here a little fight we had in the 
Broke on October 1st. We had just come over from 
Dover and, joining up with the patrol, which was then 
returning to its anchorage, the Terror ordered us to 
place a light buoy in a certain position to the south of 
the Thornton Ridge. As we were likely to be stopped 
while laying and lighting the buoy, I asked the flotilla 
leader on patrol to send me a couple of destroyers as 
escort, but on our way up we passed several floating 
mines and I signalled to the two T.B.D.'s, Mentor and 
Moorsom, to stop and sink the mines. We went along 
to the appointed position and found waiting for us four 
large and two small enemy destroyers in the direction of 
Zeebrugge. My broadside was only three guns against 
the enemy's sixteen, but I had too much pride to run 
away with the Broke after her channel scrap. I quickly 
decided to turn away and lead them close up to the mine 
barrage. As there were six of them, I hoped they would 
follow a single flotilla leader, when I should have turned 
round and gone straight for them, firing my four guns 
ahead. But they remained where they were, stopped 
and steaming slow, so I turned round and went for 
them bald-headed, firing as rapidly as possible and not- 
ing the fall of shell. We were joined by the Mentor 
and Moorsom, but our smoke prevented them from 
opening fire until we got right up to the mine barrage, 
which, of course, I could not cross. Two hits were 

13 



194 KEEPING THE SEAS 

reported by the range-taker, but it is always very dif- 
ficult to spot hits in a destroyer scrap, for everybody 
is firing, and in our navy we are no different from other 
navies — all our geese are swans. 

The enemy did not wait for all three of us to engage 
them, and when we got up to the barrage they retired 
behind a smoke screen, not to re-appear that day. I 
sent the two destroyers to continue sinking mines, and 
fixed up the light buoy we were sent out to lay, then, in 
order that there should be no undue lying or exaggera- 
tion on the part of the Germans, I lowered a whaler in 
charge of Sub.-Lieut. Peppe. He lit the buoy and pulled 
about while we, hoping that this bait would attract the 
Hun, waited for developments. Everybody laughed at 
the sub-lieutenant abandoned in this manner, but the de- 
stroyers might have held a regatta for the interference 
from the enemy would certainly have been nil. I should 
like to have seen the Germans lower boats in full view 
of Harwich or Dover. The Vossische Ze'itung, Berliner 
Tageblatt, or Lokal Anzeiger would have had half a col- 
umn on the cowardice of our sailors, had they been able 
to do so. We were quite certain that the enemy had not 
interfered with our buoy, for we steamed back during the 
night and laid some mines, and although we hung about 
for a couple of hours, not an enemy ship was seen. 

During this summer we were attacked by a new form 
of torpedo, for it practically amounted to this. On the 
3rd October, at 9.20 a. m., an electrically controlled mo- 
tor-boat was seen approaching the patrol. The destroy- 
ers and light craft fired on her and recorded a hit, which 
considerably reduced her speed. Eventually she was hit 
by the pom-pom shells fired from the destroyer North 
Star, and shortly afterwards she sank. Apparently the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 195 

working of this device was controlled by a spotting 
seaplane, who wirelessed directions to the shore control- 
ling station. 

On the 22nd October, just after nine o'clock in the 
morning, the Erebus sighted an electrically-controlled 
motor-boat nine miles north of Ostend, heading straight 
for the patrol, but the monitors, turning away, lost sight 
of her and no real attack took place. On one occasion 
the electrically-controlled motor-boat actually hit the 
monitor Erebus. There was a terrific explosion, but as 
it struck the monitor's bulge, no very great damage was 
done. The captain was wounded in the face, and the 
Erebus had several casualties. The principal damage to 
the ship was to the electrical circuits, with which the 
explosion played "old Harry." 

The mine-sweepers during this summer did very 
excellent work, and the patrol did not suffer on account 
of enemy mine-laying. 

The air raids on Dunkirk this year were worse than 
ever. When the destroyers were anchored off the port 
we had a good view of the enemy bombing raids. It 
really did not seem that they could continue without the 
annihilation of every living person in this French sea- 
port. On moonlight nights, almost continuously from 
darkness until dawn, one would hear the dismal hooting 
of the old Sandettie Light vessel, which, moored in the 
docks, used her fog signal as an air raid warning. We 
christened it "Mournful Mary," and Mary certainly 
mourned to some tune. There is no doubt Dunkirk suf- 
fered, but the sang-froid of the inhabitants left nothing 
to be desired; after a most dreadful series of air raids, 
to an outsider the inhabitants appeared to be perfectly 
unruffled. Dug-outs were constructed and preparations 



196 KEEPING THE SEAS 

made for the protection of the military and civil popula- 
tion, but nevertheless there were many casualties, for 
19 1 7 was the year of 500-pound bombs, which could not 
fail to kill. Later on I became flag captain to Admiral 
Bacon and, sitting in his office at Dover, I frequently 
had cause to telephone Dunkirk. I admired Commodore 
Lynes and his secretary, Paymaster Lieut. J. Mc. L. 
More who were so frequently bombed that I got quite ac- 
customed to hearing, "Would you mind speaking a little 
louder as there is an air raid on. There is rather a noise 
this end." 

The Commodore and his staff had to put up with a 
good deal, and they must have been men of wonderful 
physique to continue working as they did under almost 
impossible conditions. 

This year we had one or two misfortunes. One of our 
torpedo boats, No. 24, was wrecked off Dover break- 
water on the 28th January. The Ghurka was sunk by a 
mine to the westward of Dover Strait, and we lost a good 
little fellow in her skipper, Lieut.-Commander Wool- 
combe-Boyce. A good many men were lost on this occa- 
sion; Lieut.-Commander Lewin, the gunnery officer of 
the Sixth Flotilla, happened to be on board when the 
Ghurka struck a mine, and it was thanks to his gallantry 
that several of the crew were saved. Lewin, after the 
accident, seized a Kisbie life-buoy, and by his efforts 
kept afloat several men, who all held on to the life-buoy 
until they were picked up by a trawler. Lewin set a 
splendid example by insisting that the seamen should 
be taken on board first, although he had been a long time 
swimming in the cold, rough sea. 

We also lost the Myrmidon from the same cause. 
The Zulu hit a mine near Calais on one occasion, but she 



KEEPING THE SEAS 197 

was skilfully kept afloat, thanks to the seamanlike qual- 
ities displayed by her commanding officer, Lieut. John 
Brooke, and the engineer officer of the Nubian. Event- 
ually the Zulu was brought to England, minus her stern. 
Some happy wag conceived the idea of joining the stern 
part of the Nubian on to the bow half of the Zulu, for 
the sake of economy in construction. It will be remem- 
bered that the Nubian was struck in the enemy destroyer 
raid in October, 19 16. The idea materialised, and the 
joined together portions subsequently appeared in the 
Dover Patrol under the somewhat un-naval name of 
Zubian. 

The Sixth Flotilla, during 19 17, were as follows: — 
Light Cruisers. — Adventure, Active. 

Flotilla Leaders. — Faulkner, Szvift, Broke, 
Botha, Marksman. 

Tribals. — Afridi, Amazon, Ghurka, Crusader, Vik- 
ing, Nubian, Zulu, Cossack, Tartar, Mohawk, Saracen, 
Kempenfelt. 

Thirty-knotters. — Greyhound, Mermaid, Leven, 
Fawn, Kangaroo, Syren, Gipsy, Racehorse, Crane, 
Falcon. 

Torpedo Boats for Downs Patrol. — r.5.24, 

T.B.i S . 

Small Monitors. — M.23, M.21, M.24, M.25, M. 
26, M .27. 

"L" Class. — Laertes, Lance, Laverock, Lark, Loch- 
invar, Lucifer, Lydriard, Lawford, Linnet, Landrail, 
Llewellyn, Laforey, Laurel, Liberty. 

All "L" class had left the patrol by July, except 
Laforey, sunk 23d May, 19 17, when we had the follow- 
ing U M" class in their stead : — 

"M" Class. — Mentor, Meteor, Melpomene, Mor- 



198 KEEPING THS SEAS 

ris, Mastiff, Myngs, Miranda, Matchless, Nugent, 
Milne, Manley, Mansfield, Minos, North Star, Mur- 
ray, Phoebe, Moorsom. 

Large destroyers originally built for Turkey. 
— Termagent, Trident. 

Patrol Boats. — P. 1 1 , P. 1 7, P. 2 1 , P.24, P.49, P50. 



CHAPTER XIII 
Knuts and Gold 

On our "days off" in the destroyer service it often fell 
to our lot to carry monarchs, potentates and politicians, 
as their services were required and dispensed with, from 
time to time, by the various Allied nations. 

I sometimes carried the whole Cabinet about in the 
Viking, and the Chief of the General Staff usually 
accompanied the ministers and all important missions. 
Occasionally these were accompanied by lady secretaries, 
who were full of news and whose presence in itself 
offered a change to the monotony of the tedious patrol. 
There is nothing like the sight of a pretty girl to cheer 
up the war-weary sailor. 

The proudest day for the Crusader was on the occa- 
sion of a visit by King Albert and Queen Elizabeth to the 
Belgian Coast flotilla. Their Majesties, with the Prin- 
cess Jose, Prince Leopold and Prince Charles, came on 
board the Crusader and were taken out into Dunkirk 
Roads, where they boarded the monitor Terror, to see 
over the latest addition to our bombarding squadron. 
The Terror was a really efficient monitor of 14 knots 
speed with two modern 15-in. guns. Captain C. W. Bru- 
ton took the Royal Party over his ship and Queen 
Elizabeth took many photographs. Bruton gave us an ex- 
cellent lunch and King Albert inspected the ship's com- 

199 



200 KEEPING THE SEAS 

pany. The Crusader then took the Royal Party back to 
Dunkirk, where other vessels were visited. 

It was in an English destroyer, the Amazon, that the 
King and Queen crossed over to England on their first 
visit after the occupation of Belgium by the enemy. 

The Crusader had the honour four times of taking 
charge of the escort which guarded His Majesty King 
George on his visits to France. The Prince of Wales 
crossed on the same ship on his return from Italy, and 
Mr. Lloyd George made almost a habit of crossing with 
me. I shall probably be hanged for telling the following 
story about the Prime Minister: — 

Whilst commanding the Broke in 1917, I was sent to 
Calais to embark £5,000,000 worth of bullion, and my 
instructions were not to leave until an escort force ar- 
rived and reported off the harbour. It was blowing a 
northeasterly gale, accompanied by rain. The gold was 
all on board, much of it stowed in my cabin, and I had 
gone down below to get my lunch whilst waiting to 
shove off. 

Suddenly the Quarter-Master appeared in the door- 
way, his oilskins dripping with wet. "There is somebody 
wants to see you, sir, out on the wharf." I replied, 
"What does he look like? Is he an officer?" "No 
sir." "Is he a gentleman?" "I don't know about 
that sir, but he seems to know you, because he asked 
for Captain Evans." Whoever it was, I thought I had 
better go up. Sticking up my coat collar, I went out 
into the wet, and the dripping Quarter-Master pointed 
to a sentry box. I climbed down the ship's side and made 
my way to it, and there I found, huddled together, 
Lloyd George, General Robertson, and Sir Maurice 
Hankey. They asked me if I could give them some 



KEEPING THE SEAS 201 

shelter, which of course I did; it turned out that the 
cross-channel steamer which had been sent for the Prem- 
ier had been delayed, owing to the bad weather, and as it 
had not yet arrived, I suggested to the Premier that I 
should take him over with me, and to this he consented. 
I apologised for having to wait a little until my escort, 
which had now been signalled, approached and, leading 
the way into my cabin, I offered the party refreshment. 

They gazed in some surprise at the hundreds of little 
green bags packed close together on the cabin floor, and 
asked whatever they were. I explained the nature of 
their contents, and the Prime Minister, with a twinkle 
in his eye, asked if I trusted him in my cabin. I 
laughingly replied that I had better say that I did any- 
how. We sat down to a meal and then I went on the 
bridge and took my ship out of the harbour. We 
passed into a terrific sea and were soon washing down. 

On arrival at Dover, I saw my three distinguished 
passengers on to the special train and then proceeded to 
change into dry clothes. The gold was passed up and 
loaded into the railway trucks that awaited it. The 
Bank of England representative took charge of it, but 
found that there was one bag short. He explained this 
to me, and I laughingly received the intelligence, where- 
at he mildly insinuated that I was rather casual. I re- 
plied, "Not at all, I have no financial responsibility in 
this matter." Without losing our tempers we argued for 
some little time, and I pointed out that the Admiralty 
had decided no longer to pay commanding officers the 
percentage to which they were entitled for carrying 
bullion, and their Lordships stated that we would not 
be financially responsible for its loss. 

But the representative obviously did not believe me; 



202 KEEPING THE SEAS 

he was a very nice man, and he evidently thought that 
I had a "fox behind my ear," as the Norwegians say. 
Then he asked me if anyone had visited the place where 
the gold was kept. I said, "There were three men in 
my cabin, but they have gone away now. They carried 
siut-cases with them." Did I know who they were, 
asked the B.O.E.R. "Well, I know one was called 
George, but I don't think this concerns me now." The 
B.O.E.R. looked at me as if to say, "Well you're a 
quaint fellow to have charge of £5,000,000 and a beauti- 
ful ship of war." Then I offered him some tea and sug- 
gested he should count the money again. I was abso- 
lutely confident that my organisation for guarding and 
tallying this money was perfect, and I really did not feel 
that any had been lost. 

The tally was carefully compared again, and I am 
glad to say the money was correct. I do not think I 
should have been promoted if I had lost Lloyd George 
and £5,000,000 in that crossing, and I very much doubt, 
if I had lost one bag, whether my services would have 
been retained in His Majesty's Navy. 

I am glad to say I did not make many "bricks" as far 
as the conduct of my ship was concerned, but of all 
faux pas that man ever made, perhaps the following 
was the worst. In December, 191 5, Mr. Asquith, Mr. 
Lolyd George, Sir Edward Grey, Mr. Balfour, and I 
believe, Mr. Churchill came on board the Viking to cross 
from Dover to Calais. The night was very dark, and 
before I shoved off I settled them all in comfortable 
corners, where they could not get wet, for this passage I 
proposed to make at 30 knots. 

Several secretaries and others accompanied the 
ministers; I got these stowed away as well, with the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 203 

exception of one whom I found on the gangway whilst 
making my way on to the bridge. I could not see his 
face, but I didn't want him to get wet, and so I said, 
"Will you come up on the bridge, you will get wet if 
you stand there." The tall stranger replied that he 
would like very much to come on the bridge, and I led 
him up, gave him a watch-keeping coat, and glancing 
aft to see that all was clear, gave the order to slip. 

In a few seconds my destroyer was speeding out of 
harbour, writhing and plunging as she made her way 
across the Dover Strait. When she was clear of the 
traffic line and steadied on her course for Calais, I 
opened a conversation with the tall stranger standing on 
my bridge, high above everything else, where there were 
no lights to dazzle my eyes as I conned by little vessel. 

"You have a pretty rough time on destroyers here, I 
imagine," said the stranger. 

"Yes, I suppose we do," I replied, "but nothing to 
write home about," and I added, "We have a much 
better time in these big Tribals than in the thirty-knot- 
ters, which are nearly dropping to pieces. However, 
I suppose the Admiralty have nothing better to give us 
to patrol the Dover Strait." 

The tall stranger, who seemed quite a decent sort of 
bloke, replied, "No, one can't get a destroyer for love 
or money now; they are so badly needed for the Grand 
Fleet flotillas." 

Conversation drifted from destroyers to bigger ships, 
and thence to the subject of the Admiralty. I was very 
outspoken and frank in all I said, and began to analyse 
the Board of Admiralty. I remember well saying "I 
am glad Admiral Oliver is there. He is a very level- 
headed man and perfectly straight." 



2o 4 KEEPING THE SEAS 

The tall stranger said, "Oh ! yes, I like Oliver, do 
you?" and I replied, "Yes, I believe in him implicitly." 
"So do I," said the tall stranger. I peered at him in 
the darkness and asked, "Do you know Admiral Oliver ?" 
and the tall stranger replied, "Yes, he is one of my men." 
I laughed and said, "What do you mean? One of your 
men ! Are you at the Admiralty ?" "Yes," he said. 

My curiosity was aroused. "Who are you?" I asked. 
"I am the First Sea Lord," said the tall stranger, and I 
realised that I was talking to Admiral Sir Henry Jackson. 
He laughed and said, "You have taught me quite a lot." 

Mr. Churchill, as First Lord, occasionally crossed by 
destroyer. I personally, always welcomed him because 
he was interesting to talk to and because he was so 
absolutely pro-Navy. Never in my life have I met such 
an enthusiast for the naval service as Mr Churchill was, 
and I hope I will be pardoned if I mention a little inci- 
dent connected with one of these crossings. 

I had been doing a good deal of hard patrol work in 
the Viking and during the time my ship was supposed to 
be in harbour, I had been frequently called on to carry 
officials across the channel. The "Vikings" were a good 
tempered lot, and we felt that it was probably necessary 
for us to work like this, although we could not understand 
why cabinet ministers did not use the ordinary cross- 
channel steamers more. 

My sub. and I were waiting with the other officers to 
receive the First Lord on board, but where we were going 
we did not know. Presently he appeared out of the 
special train, close to where we lay alongside the Ad- 
miralty Pier and, quickly walking on board, Mr. Church- 
ill looked at me and said, "Boulogne, please." The sub. 
had a red flag in his hand for use as a signal in case the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 205 

propellers got fowled. Very promptly he stuck the flag 
up into the air, brought it down quickly and made a 
noise like a bell. He looked straight at Winston 
Churchill and said, "Taxi, 8d." Everybody roared with 
laughter, including Mr. Churchill himself, and then my 
sub. went down and gave the First Lord some tea. 

I think Mr. Churchill got his own back in our ward- 
room. He took a cup of tea, real destroyer tea such as 
no self-respecting person would drink; he lifted the cup 
to his lips, took one sip and put it down on the table; 
looking at the sub. he exclaimed, "Delicious tea !" 
The sub. had by this time taken a mouthful himself, and 
realising that it had been standing a very long time, he 
blushed with shame and brought our guest a whiskey 
and soda. 

It twice came my way to carry Admiral Jellicoe on 
board my ship to visit the Dover Patrol. He always had 
a warm spot in his heart for the Dover destroyers, and I 
was quite glad when he told Admiral Bacon to send in 
a destroyer despatch every six months. The first time 
that Lord Jellicoe took passage was in early spring; he 
visited all parts of the patrol and saw our destroyers and 
monitors on their various stations, keenly vigilant, and 
always ready to fight to the uttermost with what must 
be admitted to be merely "bows and arrows" compared 
to the weapons of the ships of the Grand Fleet he had 
recently commanded. 

I always wished for one chance such as we afforded 
to enemy attack, with our spread out patrols, which 
extended for one hundred miles off the Belgian coast to 
Beachy, and I told this to the Admiral. It was good to 
have Lord Jellicoe on board, all to oneself as it were, and 
not belonging to any of the cliques that were pro-this 



206 KEEPING THE SEAS 

man and anti-that, and I derived great pleasure from the 
association that his cruises in my destroyers afforded 
me. 

The Admiral appreciated from his first visit how men 
worked in Dover. The seamen with their years of 
anxious patrols were more at sea than any other part 
of the Navy, if taken from start to finish of the war. 
The stokers, working it is true under more sheltered 
conditions, never stopped their toiling, for when we were 
boiler-cleaning they were forced to continue, and had 
it not been for the fact that the thirty-knotters were 
so old that they were almost dropping to pieces and often 
were broken down, their stokers could never have con- 
tinued at the high pressure running exacted by the 
general scheme of patrol. Admiral Jellicoe appreciated 
all these things, and at last the patrol services got to be 
recognised. For the last two years of the war, every 
six months a patrol service despatch was published, and 
a proportion of one per cent deceived recognition. In 
the Dover Patrol this meant, however, that no destroyer 
man, if recommended for promotion, would be put for- 
ward for honour, but before that very little indeed 
had come our way for a long time. Admiral Jellicoe's 
visit certainly changed matters. For the first two years 
of the war, Dover destroyers were given one D.S.O. and 
one D.S.C. 

During the war, many men and officers in the Dover 
destroyers spent over 700 nights at sea, which might well 
be taken as parallel service to that in the front line 
trenches. Some of us did nearer 800 nights, and still 
kept merry and bright; whilst others were not so strong 
and gave way under the continual strain after a short 
year's work. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 207 

Leave, when it came our way, was greedily appreci- 
ated. It was bad luck that the day after Crusader was 
bombed and arrived at Portsmouth to refit, and her crew 
thoroughly tired out had happily turned in with no cares 
on earth in the safety of that protected harbour, that the 
only Zeppelin raid on Portsmouth Harbour took place. 
Thus was our first night spoilt, out of the scanty ten days 
we got. 

But I am drifting. These things may be interesting 
enough in their way, although they take me away from 
my subjects, which was about the "knuts" we carried. 
Lord Kitchener, Sir Douglas Haig, and generals galore 
took passage in our Dover craft, while ambassadors, 
ministers, dukes, admirals and democrats, who had to 
be pandered to and patted, constantly persuaded the 
Admiralty to send them across the channel in a "special 
destroyer." Some of them were men we took our hats 
off to and some were not. One First Lord of the Ad- 
miralty appeared not to know the difference between the 
Admiral and the station-master who awaited him on 
Dover Pier. Of all the people I personally took over, 
some returned my humble hospitality; it was Mr. Mc- 
Kenna who gave all the Viking's officers a gin and bitters 
in the restaurant car of his special train. Mr. Lloyd 
George and Sir Douglas Haig gave me a lunch at Calais, 
and they were two who mattered. 

In 19 1 7, I took Admirals Jellicoe, Oliver and Bacon, 
of the Royal Navy, and Admiral Mayo, of the United 
States Navy, to Dunkirk and thence along the Belgian 
coast to witness a bombardment of Ostend. The Terror 
had arranged to commence her firing at 3.30 p.m. She 
actually fired her first 1 5-inch shell at 3.2 p. m. Admiral 
Jellicoe asked me what would happen next and I replied, 



208 KEEPING THE SEAS 

"In ten minutes' time the Huns will fire back," for we 
knew that it took them ten minutes to get their heavy 
gun batteries going. Sure enough, at 3.12 p.m. a shell 
whistled and tore through the air, to fall two hundred 
yards or so ahead of us. 

The first lieutenant was standing on the forecastle 
talking to two American officers attached to Admiral 
Mayo's staff. One of the officers, seeing the huge splash 
made by the falling shell, turned to the sub. and said, 
"How far do you think that shell fell from this ship?" 
"About 50 yards," replied the sub. The two American 
officers looked at one another and then back to the sub. 
who began to feel uncomfortable, in that he had much 
underestimated the distance from the danger, but he 
was soon put at his ease, for the younger American said, 
"I guess that will have whittled down to five yards be- 
fore I get home to Philadelphia." 

The Admirals were all interested in the bombardment 
which the Terror carried out; it was all very spectacular 
with the white smoke made by the motor launches, the 
slow movement of the great gun muzzle as the monitor 
trained her turrets necessary for firing, the circling aero- 
planes keeping off hostile aircraft from approaching 
to spot for the enemy batteries; the long line of patrol- 
ling destroyers ready to pounce on an electrically con- 
trolled motorboat or lurking submarine, or even a pos- 
sible rush attack through the smoke screen by a half- 
flotilla of enemy torpedo craft. This was more a possi- 
bility than a probability, for never in the history of the 
Dover Patrol did German destroyers press home their 
attacks by day. 

The date chosen proved to be an exceedingly fortunate 
one, for we had bright sunshine, a flat, calm sea and 



KEEPING THE SEAS 209 

sufficiently low visibility to make the ships invisible from 
the shore. Our spotting was carried out most effectively 
by aeroplanes. The return fire from the big gun positions 
ashore was more than usually inaccurate on account of 
the weather conditions and the careful aerial guard 
which was kept today. The bombardments completed, 
the Broke returned via Dunkirk Roads to Dover, and 
the four Admirals landed after what can only have been 
a very pleasant day. 

I may say that we only heard of Admiral Mayo's 
projected visit an hour before he came on board. We 
did not possess a full Admiral's flag of the United States 
Navy in our signal locker, but "our Mr. Smith," the 
yeoman of the signals, who never was found failing, 
quickly manufactured one. The flag is blue, with four 
white stars on it. He had not time to do anything but 
tack the white stars on when the Admiral stepped on 
board and his flag had to be hoisted. The flag stood 
very well until the Terror fired her first shot; we were 
quite close to her, and the subsequent concussion caused 
one of the tacked-on stars to drop out of the flag. For- 
tunately Lieut. Despart was the only one to notice the 
falling star, and whilst the four Admirals were below 
having tea, the flag was hauled down and the star ad- 
justed into place once more. 

When the Admirals disembarked, we presented this 
flag to Admiral Mayo, it being the first time that a full 
Admiral's flag of the United States Navy had been under 
fire on board a British man-of-war. 

Many of the officials who crossed on the Dover 
destroyers had never been on board a man-of-war be- 
fore, and to those whose first experience it was of travel- 
ling, under the white ensign, everything was interesting, 

14 



210 KEEPING THE SEAS 

except, of course, in bad weather. The great, silent 
Navy appealed to them, with its conditions, customs 
and altogether foreign figures of speech. It is perhaps a 
good thing that the Admiralty allow us such freedom 
of speech now-a-days, when hostilities have ceased, for 
one realises that what to us is absolutely commonplace 
and devoid of interest, often furnishes strangers with 
quite a different impression of life, and for quaint sea 
creatures, not accustomed to associating with cabinet 
ministers and high officials, the presence on board of the 
"great, wise and eminent," afforded a break to the gen- 
eral routine. 

Personally, I derived much amusement from compar- 
ing the different types of men and their viewpoints on 
the war, which usually formed the main topic of con- 
versation as we sped across the channel. Mr. Balfour 
was always polite. Mr. Lloyd George never appeared 
distressed or dejected in any way, and his appearance 
alongside the ship generally elicited a cheer from the 
ship's company of whatever destroyer was taking him. 
Mr. Churchill was full of quiet humour and excellent 
company always. 

Queen Elizabeth was the best sailor of all; however 
rough the weather, she thoroughly enjoyed herself. 

One day I was talking to Mr. Churchill on board a 
small vessel which was waiting to carry a really splendid 
collection of "knuts" across, and as we watched them file 
on board, each accompanied by his parasites and hangers- 
-on, a little, dark-haired, spectacled man appeared at 
the end of the bow. He quickly glanced about him 
before walking on board. Mr. Churchill raised his hat 
and said to me, "That is the real great man amongst 
us." "Who is he? " I asked. "Venizelos," he replied. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 211 

I ventured that I thought other great men were there, 
but the late First Lord insisted that this little Greek was 
the greatest. 

Lord Milner always impressed the sailors very much, 
and others, like Sir Eric Geddes, General Smuts, Sir 
Edward Carson, Mr. Hughes, Sir Robert Borden, and 
the American x^dmiral Benson, all brought with them 
special distinctions or characteristics by which they were 
remembered. 

The people who talked least of all were the 
ambassadors; I suppose it was their trade not to give 
themselves away. The people who talked most were 
always the Americans. They had more to say than 
anybody, but then I had so much affection for them and 
so many friends in the States myself, that I opened out 
more to the United States soldiers and sailors than to 
those who spoke languages with which I was un- 
acquainted. 

W were conversing about our distinguished passengers 
after a rather heavy season of ferry trips made in our 
time off patrol, and I was very much struck with a remark 
made by a junior officer during the discussion. He said, 
"How very ordinary these great men are." I could not 
help laughing, and I replied, "Do you think they grow 
ostrich feathers or have peacocks' tails? What do you 
expect?" 

"Oh ! no, sir,", the sub. replied, "but they seem so 
'bally' ignorant." 



CHAPTER XIV 

Dover Mine-sweepers 

Not the least picturesque character in the Dover Patrol 
was Lieut-Commendar W. G. Rigg, R.N., who was the 
first Dover officer to win the D.S.O. Rigg had left the 
Navy and at the outbreak of hostilities was a district 
inspector of the Royal National Lifeboat Association. 
The retired navy rejoined in its entirety (it had to!) 
and Rigg's original appointment was as mine-sweeping 
officer, Dover. When this appointment was made it 
was considered that the Dover area was impossible to 
mine on account of the strong tides for which we know 
it is famous, or, shall I say, infamous. Rigg was 
practically the junior officer, who could be classed as 
expert in this particular work; he bowed to the decision 
of authorities and repaired to the port in question. 
To begin with he was given four old trawlers, which 
arrived at Dover straight from their fishing grounds, 
having discharged their fish cargo at Milford Haven en 
route. They arrived at Dover empty, with no appliances 
whatever, except rusty old trawling wires ; and Rigg 
with his self-contained staff of one, smilingly inspected 
the four vessels, two of which rejoiced in the names of 
Falmouth and Abelard, and two others, whose names I 
cannot remember. Within four days they were actually 
sweeping, and as the Dover surf deer made their way 

212 



KEEPING THE SEAS 213 

into port from the flanking station at Leathercoat, these 
four toilers of the sea were always in evidence, making 
quite safe the entry to the harbour. 

In 1 9 14 no mines were laid by the enemy in our area, 
but in other parts of our coasts considerable activity 
obtained, and it was only a question of when the horned 
"eggs" would appear in the Straits. Gradually the 
Admiralty acquired more auxiliary vessels to perfect the 
mine-sweeping organisation, and as these units became 
available Dover got her scanty supply. 

By the end of 19 14 we had about eight trawlers work- 
ing at the mine-sweeping under the command of Rigg. 
Because no mines had yet been found, although the area 
was swept with commendable industry in spite of the 
dreadful weather obtaining towards the end of 19 14, the 
mine-sweepers carried out a variety of duties, for which 
I may say they volunteered, for these fishermen were so 
zealous that they never gave anybody a chance of im- 
posing duties upon them. 

On one occasion the influx of Belgian refugees was so 
great that 4,500 of them found themselves in small 
steamers alongside The Prince of Wales' Pier. The mine- 
sweepers, who had been toiling until 3 a.m. arrived at 
the pier and quickly grasped that the poor Belgians were 
without food and any sort of comfort. They were, in 
fact, so crowded together that there was standing room 
only, on board the vessels that carried them. I do not 
know the exact reasons for their being retained on the 
little steamers, perhaps it was on account of the capture 
of thirty spies which were found secreted amongst the 
refugees; anyhow, it is to be presumed that there was 
cause enough for the delay in landing these poor people. 
Rigg, with his minesweeper skippers, firemen, boys and 



2i 4 KEEPING THE SEAS 

lined old mariners made it their business to do what 
they could for the unfortunate Belgians, and they had 
the whole forty-five hundred of them fed and tended 
between 8 a.m. and noon. This was a wonderful feat 
when we consider that the total complements of the 
eight small mine-sweepers did not exceed a hundred men. 
They gave all their provisions, all their money and 
practically everything they possessed. A stream of 
billies full of cocoa and tea made its way from the 
trawlers to the refugee ships. Rigg went the round of 
the hotels in search of milk for the babies and children. 
He collected bucketfuls, which he brought to the pier 
in his motor-car. When I say collected, I mean literally 
commandeered it, for this officer and one or two men 
who were with him simply carried the buckets into the 
hotel dining-room and emptied the jugs of milk they 
found on the tables ! 

The cheerful and willing assistance rendered by the 
mine-sweepers did no end of good amongst the refugees. 
The stimulus to obtain the milk materialised through the 
request made to Rigg by a Belgian lady supporting a 
badly wounded soldier lying on the deck of one of the 
steamers. The weeping children had almost passed 
unnoticed, for the Belgian mothers had hushed their 
sobbing infants so that their wailing would not help to 
make matters worse. 

Fortunately, the weather was perfect, otherwise these 
poor people would have been in a moderate hell. Com- 
mander Rigg removed one poor woman from the 
steamer and took her to the Lord Warden Hotel, where 
she gave birth to a child after her arrival. Men, women 
and children had been standing on board for forty-eight 
solid hours. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 215 

Fortunately there are always bright incidents con- 
nected with these sad scenes, and the mine-sweepers 
smilingly will tell you of "Bourgomaster Max" and his 
wife. This was a title they gave to a man of superhuman 
energies, who had the gift of seeing before anyone else 
what this or that poor creature was in need of. The 
two people were splendid and if they come across these 
lines, I hope they will realise that their friends, the 
mine-sweepers, still talk about them in tones of admira- 
tion. The Belgians in question will not forget this nick- 
name which the rough sailors used freely in addressing 
them. 

The foregoing is merely an incident in the history of 
the Dover mine-sweepers, and it occurred during their 
more idle days. 

The complements of the Dover mine-sweeping section 
increased, as vessels became available, to 84 trawlers, 
18 paddle mine-sweepers and twelve motor launches, 
while 3,000 men and 350 officers joined this service. 
Lieut. Arthur Buckland became second in command, and 
this officer, whose courage was absolutely unshakeable, 
has spent many years in sweeping up mines. Some of 
the men who came down to join Rigg's mine-sweeping 
force had been already blown up twice before they ar- 
rived on the scene. Sailors don't care ! 

In the spring of 19 15 Dover was beset by mines, and 
on a certain occasion when Rigg and his mine-sweepers 
were out, the cargo steamer Toward blew up. A second 
steamer quickly followed her and sank in a matter of 
seconds. The yacht Aries went in to try and save the 
crews and was herself mined and sunk, and it was only 
by the greatest luck that a thirty-knot destroyer, rushing 
headlong into the mess, was headed off and kept from 



216 KEEPING THE SEAS 

committing suicide. This was one of our darkest days 
in the patrol, a whole gale was blowing from the south- 
west accompanied by a terrific sea, which made sweeping 
impossible. The mine-sweepers stood by the dangerous 
area and unfortunately the trawler Othello was blown 
up whilst waiting to sweep. The only survivor of this 
little ship was a signal boy. 

It was difficult to stop the traffic; however, Admiral 
Bacon succeeded in doing this, and 151 ships were held 
up in the Downs and 101 to the west of Folkestone Gate. 
Long before the gale had abated the sweeping was re- 
commenced, but it was not very effective, owing to the 
difficulty in manoeuvring the ships while such a sea was 
running. A channel was however swept outside the 
dangerous area, passing to the southward of it, and 
finally the traffic was released and led through by mine- 
sweeping officers, who piloted the ships from the Cossack 
and another Dover destroyer. 

The people of Dover, thoroughly shaken up by the 
succession of explosions which took place two days be- 
fore, watched from the tops of their houses this extra- 
ordinary procession of ships. It is no exaggeration to 
say that they formed an unbroken line, for from the 
shore they had the appearance of a long black snake 
with bristles sticking out from its back. 

A great friend and admirer of the Dover mine- 
sweepers was Lieut. C. Gartside Tipping, who com- 
manded the yacht Sanda, and it was a severe blow to Rigg 
and his sweepers when that officer was killed by a shell off 
Zeebrugge at the age of 68. I believe that I am right 
in saying that he was the oldest naval officer afloat. 

In a volume such as this one cannot expand at any 
great length on such a vast subject as mine-sweeping, but 




r- 

m 
< 
H 
O 



o 

= 



P4 

Q 
< 
en 
Id 
P4 
U 



KEEPING THE SEAS 217 

we destroyer folk made friends amongst the trawler 
skippers as well as with the more senior mine-sweeping 
officers. They had a fund of humour in the mine- 
sweeping craft, and they were extraordinarily fond of 
pets. One had a monkey, most of them had dogs; 
and chickens, pigs, and kittens were all to be found on 
their craft. On one of the trawlers, I came across a 
huge kennel on which was painted "Lion." Inside was 
the tiniest mongrel puppy I had ever set eyes on. On 
this ship there were no less than eleven dog-kennels on 
the deck, and when I made some joke as to lumbering 
up the already crowded space, a dry old fellow merely 
put me wise by informing me that if the mine-sweeper 
was blown up, kennels were as good as boats, a thing 
I had not thought of, but it is very true, for a heavy 
thing like a boat is often smashed at the davits when a 
mine explosion takes place. 

My gunner in the Viking always held the opinion that 
the mine-sweepers should have been manned by con- 
scientious objectors, for the object of mine-sweeping was 
certainly philanthropic enough in its way. 

I am glad to say that groups of understanding people 
supplied the mine-sweepers with warm clothing, com- 
forts of all descriptions, and with literature, footballs 
and games. The motto of the mine-sweepers was 
"Who's afraid!" Certainly they were not. 



CHAPTER XV 

A Little Bit of Shore Time, More Flag Changes 
and a Ladle-full of Fiction 

Towards the end of October, 19 17, Admiral Bacon sent 
for me and told me that Captain Humphrey Bowring, 
D.S.O., his Chief-of-Staff, was leaving Dover to get in 
his sea time, and the Admiral asked if I would like to 
relieve him. I naturally said yes, realising that one 
would learn a great deal as Chief-of-Staff to such a clever 
man, apart from the fact that I was now somewhat senior 
to be sculling round in a destroyer, without being 
Captain (D). 

Accordingly, I first relieved Captain Percy Withers 
for a week or so while he went on leave and I got into 
the habit of controlling the Sixth Flotilla, arranging the 
patrols and carrying out the requisite administrative 
work. Then I moved into the Admiral's office and took 
over from "Hindenburg," who explained the operations 
planned for the future and tcld me my various duties. 
In a few days Captain Bowring left Dover and I took 
over his duties. 

Amongst other things, I had to make out the orders 
under Admiral Bacon's directions, for laying the huge 
minefield which was placed between Folkestone and 
Grisnez, for the purpose of stopping submarines entering 
the English Channel. By this time we had learnt a 

218 



KEEPING THE SEAS 219 

great deal concerning mine-laying, and we had the 
satisfaction of knowing that our mines would now go 
off. Without wishing to criticise unduly, I may say 
that many mines broke adrift owing to the inadequacy 
of the mooring arrangements, or else to the improper 
fitting and mooring of the mines by those whose duty 
it was to see to this. 

The barrage was certainly the best that had yet been 
put down in the Dover Patrol, for we were given as 
many miles as we required, and it only became a question 
of maintaining the barrage in an efficient state. A very 
fine plan was evolved at the Admiralty, according to 
which the whole of the Dover Strait in the vicinity of 
the minefield was to be illuminated by flares burnt from 
the auxiliary patrol craft, and this portion of the channel 
was to rejoice in eternal day, so to speak. Provided the 
flares were burnt in organised fashion it would be 
impossible for a submarine to pass through the Strait 
on the surface, which the Admiralty assumed they had 
been doing. The idea was that with sufficient hunting 
craft operating in the illuminated area, any submarine 
sighted would be forced to dive, and the minefield was 
so arranged that with her periscope awash, the submar- 
ine would always be in danger of striking a mine; rows 
and rows were being put down, and other means, which 
I am not at liberty to describe, were projected to assist 
in the U boat destruction. 

Admiral Bacon was relieved of his command at the 
end of the year by Admiral Keyes, with whom I had the 
honour to serve for a few weeks, until his own staff joined 
the Dover Patrol and relieved me of my duties as flag 
captain and Chief-of-Staff. My next appointment was 
to command the light cruiser Active, for the purpose of 



220 KEEPING THE SEAS 

running large, slow convoys to Gibraltar and other 
places. 

Before finally saying farewell to the Dover Patrol I 
must not forget an incident concerning the loss of a 
confidential book. The Vice-Admiral commanding the 
Dover Patrol was on one occasion travelling in the 
destroyed Mohawk (not when she was commanded by 
the author). The Admiral travelled from Dunkirk to 
Dover, and once clear of the Dyck light vessel, he re- 
paired to the chart house to rest, for he had been out on 
the Belgian coast throughout the night before. 

Glancing round the chart house, his gaze lit upon a 
document marked "Most secret." It contained the 
chart of the British minefields, and the Admiral realised 
that if the ship had struck a mine, there was nothing to 
prevent this unweighted document from floating away 
and possibly falling into the hands of the enemy. He 
accordingly put it into his despatch case and said no 
more about it until he was safely in Dover, when he 
signalled the guilty destroyer captain to repair to his 
office with confidential chart, Y.14, or whatever it was 
called. The Lieut-Commander searched his confidential 
book cupboard, the chart house and every possible hole 
or corner for the document in question, but in vain; 
large beads of sweat collected on his brow, and after the 
most searching questions, he established without doubt 
that the chart had been consulted by the Sub-Lieut, a 
few minutes before the Admiral entered the chart house; 
from that time it had been missing. 

My young friend, the destroyer captain was from the 
North country and pretty hard-headed at that, after 
putting two and two together he surmised that the 
Admiral was gently pulling his leg. He accordingly 



KEEPING THE SEAS 221 

repaired to the Admiral's office to consult the Great 
Mogul. I can so well picture his feelings; gazing into 
those steel blue eyes which saw through every one of 
us ; I can almost feel the shudder that vibrated through 
the Lieut-Commander's frame when the Admiral put 
it to him that he had lost his secret chart, in a few 
icy but well chosen words, the Admiral reprimanded the 
officer then, opening the drawer of his desk, he handed 
the envelope containing the mine chart back. The 
destroyer captain blurted out a confused apology and 
withered away. Finding himself, one might say, a broken 
man on board his little torpedo craft, he consoled himself 
with that priceless tonic, a good old gin and bitters. 
His companions sympathetically gathered around him 
in the ward room, and once the spirit had warmed him 
back to life he felt a little more courageous and, em- 
bittered by the thought that his expected promotion was 
at stake, he ordered another gin and bitters, stamped on 
the floor, drank it down and said, "To hell with the man ! 
Things have come to a pretty pass if you cannot trust 
your own Vice-Admiral not to steal your confidential 
books." 

As a matter of fact, Admiral Bacon was one of the 
kindest of men in many ways, and although I never 
thought he did justice to us in the destroyer service, I 
never lost sight of the fact that we represented only one 
of the many strings to his fiddle, and in looking through 
his recommendations, one was forced to admit that he 
tried to do his best for each branch and unit of his com- 
mand. Undoubtedly the destroyers, drifters, and mine- 
sweepers and trawlers had the roughest time, with the 
possible exception of those on the commodore's staff at 
Dunkirk; but there were the monitor people, the flying 



222 KEEPING THE SEAS 

men, the submarines and others who all had their exciting 
time and who never let him down. We all get our re- 
wards somehow and somewhen, and we appreciated one 
another's efforts. Most of us were out to hunt for 
scalps and for my own part, I have in my possession 
four beautiful silver candlesticks from the twelve mon- 
itor captains of 1915-16, and also a silver teapot from 
the Dover destroyers, which I appreciate far more than 
any M.V.O. or D.S.O., for they represent after all the 
esteem and appreciation of one's own kind, who were 
type specimens of the Britons who really counted in 
this great war. 

Admiral Bacon was in some ways secretive about his 
plans, and even when I was flag captain to him, he 
planned and did many things with which I was quite 
unacquainted. But he did something which I got to 
know about in spite of all his secrecy; for instance, one 
of our most gallant fighters found himself in serious 
financial straits and bordering on bankruptcy. Without 
saying a word to the individual, the Admiral sent him 
anonymously, through one of his friends, the sum of 
£200. As only one other man besides "Fred Karno" 
knows whom this money was sent to, there is no harm 
in stating this, for the helping hand was sufficient, and 
the officer in question is now facing life afresh and facing 
it finely too. 

We all have had our crosses to bear in this war, and 
Admiral Bacon has not escaped without his sorrows. He 
gave his first son, a soldier, for old England and, to my 
lasting regret, his only other boy died suddenly of 
pneumonia a couple of months after hostilities ceased; 
Little Robin Bacon was well known to the Dover Patrol; 
he often travelled across channel in my Viking as an 



KEEPING THE SEAS 223 

Osborne cadet. He was passionately fond of destroyers, 
and he sometimes came on board to fish in Dover 
Harbour. He was not always fortunate in his choice of 
tides for fishing, but rather than disappoint him, the 
kindly blue-jackets would give him a line, and while one 
attracted his attention to something going on in the 
harbour, another would pull up the line, hook on a dead 
flat-fish, tip the wink to the wardroom steward who 
would wait a second, then, quickly putting his hand 
through the scuttle near which the line was trailing, 
give two short jerks and my little friend would haul on 
board a fish. I had every sympathy with this boy, who 
was forced to leave the Navy owing to a weak heart, and 
at that time having no children of my own, I spent quite 
a lot of my spare time in writing and telling him stories. 
I think my best effort was the following; it is purely 
fictitious and was written on the bridge of my ship, which 
I practically never left in war time. My readers can cut 
it out if it doesn't interest them. 

THE LOBSTER THAT KICKED 



The little cruiser Porcupine was a new arrival at the port 
of Kouro-Bambo, and her captain paused in his morning 
walk on the deck and gazed along the unfamiliar shore 
line. The glare of the yellow sands and the gleaming 
white of the houses almost pained his eyes. His steward, 
who had been ashore, interrupted his contemplation of 
the little African town by coming up to display his pur- 
chases — a lobster and a crayfish, and two fine specimens 
they were — one looking very English with his rounded 
indigo back and his powerful sinister claws, and the other 
very foreign with rugged purple, spiky body. 



224 KEEPING THE SEAS 

"If you want the best, sir, you must choose those that 
kick," said the steward, who was of course, an expert on 
such matters. 

The captain was amused and interested. He lifted 
them up, one after the other, and they kicked and clicked 
their claws vigorously. If the steward's theory were 
sound, he had assuredly chosen well. 

The captain went into his cosily furnished cabin, and, 
taking the receiver off its stand, telephoned to the signal 
bridge some invitations to lunch. A Frenchman, an 
Italian and an American responded to the resulting 
semaphore message that bade them to the table of the 
captain of the Porcupine. The answer in each case was 
the signalled letters, "W.M.P." To have been correct, 
French, the language of diplomacy, should have been 
employed both for the message and the answers, but the 
jargon of the sea served as well, and better. "With 
much pleasure," they all understood, and considering 
each signalman knew his mother tongue and no other, 
the facility with which the communication passed was 
extraordinary. 

The forenoon sped away in sunshine and gentle breeze. 
The clear blue water near the anchored ships sparkled 
away into a golden glitter towards the steeper part of the 
African coast. The dazzling brightness hurt the eyes if 
one's gaze were continued over long, for there was July 
heat in it and the latitude was low. The morning was 
passed with the usual activity in the Porcupine, the 
smoothly working routine reflecting credit on her execu- 
tive officer. The men, after inspection and prayers, ran 
barefooted in flannels and trousers round and round the 
deck; then away aloft up the rigging on one side, down 
again on the other; forward, aft, to starboard, back to 



KEEPING THE SEAS 225 

port, and finally to halt and "dress" once more on the 
quarter deck. 

The Porcupine was a real ship — a little one it is true, 
but she was built as a man-of-war, had an active service 
crew, save for a few pensioners and fleet reserve men, 
and a very active-service first lieutenant. "No. 1" was 
such a tower of strength and naval efficiency that, when 
he got angry, even the captain was quiet and kept out of 
the way, like a discreet mouse. For the captain knew 
men. He knew young men best, and he knew just how 
each one felt. He had done his share of first lieutenant's 
time and was well aware that no ship is big enough to 
have both captain and first lieutenant doing the latter's 
work. That was why he made himself scarce when 
No. 1 was in Bersark mood. No. 1 was Irish, and he 
sometimes stretched things and cut men's tempers 
pretty fine — but never once too fine — and it was just at 
these times, when he threw his arms about, opened his 
mouth and made a noise, that his captain emulated the 
discreet mouse. He was not very big himself. 

There were other times in the Porcupine's life when 
the first lieutenant felt his patience exhausted and his 
temper too dangerous, and then the captain was called 
in to help matters out and to talk to the crew. So life 
began afresh. Number One's ruffled feathers would be 
smoothed down, and everybody knew that all was well, 
but that better look-outs must be kept, that the boat's 
crews must dress better, pull better, and not get caught 
smoking when waiting at the landing stages — and so on 
and so forth. The skipper knew how to talk, and he loved 
these ugly men dearly, for he owed much to them. 

The captain's orations usually took place on Sunday, 
when most of the crew were accessible, and generally 

15 



226 KEEPING THE SEAS 

followed the short reading of prayers that is quaintly 
recorded in a ship's log-book as "performed divine 
service." The occasional address concluded, the captain 
invariably nods to the steel and sinewy "No. i" who 
salutes and, turning to the hands, gives the order — 
"Turn for'ard, right and left turn, double march." The 
last word snaps out and sets in motion a bobbing, 
doubling, hobbling, barefooted, or heavy-booted crowd 
of muscular, simple-minded men. 

It was not often that the captain felt constrained to 
make such an address, for there was never any serious 
"slacking off" in the Porcupine, nor is there in any other 
man-of-war when proper discipline obtains, when officers 
look after the interests of their men, and, lastly, when 
the men's own hearts are true. But, even in men-of- 
war, men's hearts are sometimes weak and temptations 
strong, and you ashore, who have lovely homes, and 
pretty wives or handsome husbands, or babies to bath 
and love — you know nothing of the temptations that 
beset the hard-earned leisure hours of "the lobster that 
kicks," to apply that sobriquet to the high-spirited young 
wanderers who go down to the sea in ships. The most 
excellent lobster that was ever destined for boiling never 
kicked more lustily in protest at being held up for inspec- 
tion than a good sailor kicks against inactivity and bore- 
dom. 

The captain's lunch party assembled at i p.m. The 
Frenchman was a senior, bearded, man with the red and 
green ribbons of the Legion D'Honneur and the Croix 
de Guerre, and he called the more youthful captain, 
"Mon cher fils." The Italian, a perfect peacock in the 
matter of decorations, was a distinguished young noble- 
man and recently attache at a European embassy — 



KEEPING THE SEAS 227 

polished, alert, and observant. The American, young 
also, and fresh into the war, came on board with a great 
salute, a sweeping bow, and then, in sheer high spirits, 
went through the mock ceremony of kissing the captain's 
hand — after the gallant fashion of his Italian confrere 
with the ladies of Kouro-Bamba. The Frenchman and 
Italian were amused, for although they had never met 
the American before, they knew that he had recently 
shared with the captain of the Porcupine the splendid 
pleasure of sinking an enemy submarine, and therefore 
understood the reason for his gaiety. 

At lunch they were the cheeriest little party imagin- 
able. All languages were mixed, like the fruit salad 
which ended what the lobster started — a very creditable 
war-time meal. The men each signed four menu cards, 
which were pocketed as souvenirs. Then drank to the Al- 
lies and separately to France, England, Italy and Amer- 
ica. They smoked and discussed the war, their com- 
mands, their achievements and ambitions. They were 
just four big boys and nothing more, but they were by 
no means narrow in their views. They were all great 
travellers and, as the Arabs say, "He who travels far 
sees much." Their yarns were full of colour and inter- 
est, for they were sailors, and each of them had imbibed 
the poetry of the sea. 

At three o'clock the little party broke up abruptly, 
for two of their four ships were to leave that afternoon 
for a week's cruise along the sun-baked African coast. 
The Englishman saw his guests over the side, and then, 
while the lunch was being cleared away, he strolled upon 
the decks. It was distressingly hot, and he wondered 
how the white people could live through the fetid sum- 
mer months at Kouro Bamba. He searched the shore 



228 KEEPING THE SEAS 

with his telescope and then, swinging on his heel, his 
thoughts turned to his beloved Porcupine again. 

It was a "make and mend" afternoon — the afternoon 
when the sailors are free to repair and wash their clothes, 
write, read, or spend their time as best pleased them. 
Some were reading, some writing, some sleeping, while 
others tinkled mandolines or fashioned little models. 
The carpenter's mate was making a tiny chair for Peter, 
his baby boy. He was a little premature with his task 
and also in naming his child, for it appeared that, as yet, 
Peter was only "expected." The captain watched the 
fingers of the nimble "Chippy Chap"* at work, and the 
latter explained that Peter should arrive in about three 
months' time. The captain laughed rather shyly, for 
he himself was unmarried, and after chatting with the 
man about his home for a little while he turned away to 
find the first lieutenant, with the idea of inviting him 
to land for a walk and tea. 



II 

The periods spent by the Porcupine in port became 
more frequent, for the enemy no longer flew his flag in 
those distant, sunlit seas. The crews of the various 
allied ships became fretful and discontented. They had 
come to fight, but the patrols yielded nothing — not the 
merest flutter of the world-hated enemy ensign. 

The "Porcupines" were no better than their fellows. 
It was fighting they wanted, and they had energy to 
expend. Ashore they met men of other ships that had 

* Sea slang for all carpenter ratings. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 229 

been in the neighborhood throughout the war. They 
began to mix with them and drink with them, and in 
three months many of the bright, clear-eyed boys from 
the Porcupine were on the downward road. The same 
story was oft repeated when they were brought before 
the captain. 

"Just one or two beers and a couple of "Vinos," sir, 
and I don't remember nothing more." 

The men's records were clean, and at first it was diffi- 
cult to credit the patrol reports. One evening, however, 
when the captain had been dining ashore with the French 
skipper, he saw for himself that the reports were well 
founded. On the way down to their boats, which 
awaited them at the mole, a seaman rolled unsteadily 
into the glare of an electric light which cast a big illu- 
minated circle on the dusty road. The two captains 
stepped aside to avoid the tipsy giant. 

"Ma foi," exclaimed the Frenchman. 

"Le rot des zig-zageurs," said the Englishman lightly, 
but he did not feel light-hearted, for he had recognized 
the man as one of the best of his crew. 

"They're lobsters that kick," he muttered to himself 
as he entered his cabin, " and I'm going to kick too." 
He sat down at his writing-table and penned a pathetic 
appeal to the one admiral he knew. 

"The environment of Kouro-Bamba," he wrote, "is 
unhealthy. The ship is becoming demoralised, officers 
for want of exercise are losing all their freshness, and the 
men, poisoned by the liquor which the natives sell, are 
frittering their fine health away. Their moral fibre is 
being broken down by the temptations of this torrid 
African hell." 

He turned in, switched on the electric fan, and tried to 



2 3 o KEEPING THE SEAS 

go to sleep. But the air was heavy with the heat and 
for a long time he lay thinking of what he had written. 
The Admiral was one of the sternest of Sea Lords, 
and the letter, although written privately, was in the 
nature of a complaint. There was, however, no British 
Admiral at Kouro-Bamba and, rightly or wrongly, the 
Porcupine's skipper had kicked. 



Ill 

It was the last night on the station. The Porcupine had 
been ordered away on a special mission. The coaling 
was finished, and the provisions, ammunition, and other 
stores taken abroad. All shore-leave was stopped, for 
the Porcupine was to sail at dawn. 

Many friendships had been made on the station, with 
allied ships and with allied folk at Kouro-Bamba. That 
port of mushroom growth, which but two years before 
was merely a little village nestling peacefully in the midst 
of a wealth of glorious vegetation, had become a south- 
ern Klondyke. Rough sheds and gimcrack buildings con- 
trasted rudely with fantastic minarets and cream-white 
native houses. Fortunes had been made there as a 
result of the war, and money had been scattered prodi- 
gally in hospitality to the officers and crews of the 
allied ships. It would be hard to say which of the allied 
nations controlled the port commercially, so varied and 
extraordinary were the war-time interests concerned. 
The military control, however, was pronounced and 
efficient, and with the natural defences of the extraor- 
dinary place, rendered Kouro-Bamba free from danger 
of the enemy — that is to say from the enemy without, 



KEEPING THE SEAS 231 

for the enemy within was at work ruining the honest 
man, fleecing the soldier and sailor, and extorting the 
ugliest sums of money from the governments interested 
in the place. 

The captain's appeal to his admiral had procured the 
desired result, for he had been selected with his ship 
to take part in the hunting down and destroying of a 
commerce raider which had appeared in adjacent seas. 
The Porcupine had been relieved by a similar vessel, 
so it was good-bye to this newly created African port, 
with all its charms and tricks, attractions and sins. 
There had been many happy hours to look back to, and 
yet there were thoughts of certain days in the port that 
brought regrets and unpleasant reflections to the minds 
of the Porcupine's boys, both officers and men. 



The Captain was pacing the quarter-deck before din- 
ner — the dinner which the wardroom officers were giv- 
ing to their most intimate friends at the base port, and to 
which he had been invited. He had dressed early, and 
was watching the sun set behind a low bank of stratus 
cloud which slowly rolled in from the sea, promising the 
usual morning mist — the mist which will at least bring 
a welcome moisture to the sultry atmosphere of Kouro- 
Bamba. There is little twilight in those latitudes, and 
before many minutes the stars were peeping out and 
welcoming the full moon as she rose gracefully and cast 
her silver sheen over the gently heaving sea. From the 
three funnels of the Porcupine little wisps of smoke 
curled thinly towards the zenith in the calmness of the 
African nightfall. 

The captain gazed at the rising moon, and then around 



232 KEEPING THE SEAS 

at the fairylike lights of the distant town. Up there on 
the rocky slopes were more little pin-points of light. A 
faint breath of air stirred the water and brought the 
tiniest soupcon of dampness to his nostrils, and the 
faintest scent of that strange, sad land of Africa. A 
light footfall caused him to turn his head. It was his 
Irish first lieutenant, in white mess jacket and dark cloth 
trousers. 

"Are you ready for dinner, sir, our guests have all 
arrived?" 

"Yes, No. i," the captain answered, and then, looking 
across the moonlit sea, he added, "this is very beautiful, 
but it isn't war for us." 

His second-in-command concurred. 

"Life has been too easy at Kouro-Bamba," he said, 
thinking of the punishment return, "and too demoralis- 
ing." 

"Yes," said the captain, with a laugh, "but the lobster 
has kicked — and kicked to some purpose, too ; and he told 
No. i of the step he had taken to get the Porcupine 
moved, and of the special service upon which she was to 
be employed. 

They turned and made their way to the ward-room 
where the table had been extended to run the whole 
length of the mess. The marines, in their white mess 
tunics and white gloves, bustled around with the silver 
plated dishes, and the two wine stewards betrayed their 
presence by the repeated popping of champagne corks. 

The minature banquet began. The guests were not 
all British, but they were all good fellows — young men, 
mostly soldiers or sailors. Nothing mattered that night, 
for the Porcupine would be off in a few hours and was 




. 



LIEUTENANT PULLEN, R.N.V.R. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 233 

hardly likely to return. She had been popular, and would 
be missed. The sailor guests were envious, for they felt 
that the Porcupine would get her chance. 

The evening passed merrily — hilariously, with laugh- 
ter and song. The wardroom servants cleared the dinner 
table and passed round smokes and silver trays of 
whiskies. The big table was then unrigged, and amidst 
a furore of applause the engineer-lieutenant took his 
seat at the piano. Songs of all kinds he accompanied. 
The words and music floated up through the wardroom 
skylight, and out into the stillness of the African night. 
The sing-song continued for an hour or two, and then the 
men danced. The atmosphere of the wardroom was too 
thick for words, and eyes began to smart from the clouds 
of tobacco and cigar smoke. Officers and other guests 
danced in their shirt-sleeves with pipes in their mouths, 
without a care in the world. 

At midnight the skipper said good-night, but not so 
the other guests. Their farewell was made at 3 a.m., 
when the sleepy crew of the motor-boat were awakened 
by the quartermaster, and the guests, still singing, left 
the ship amidst cheers, good-byes, and a chorus of "For 
they are jolly good fellows." The little boat cuts through 
the water and the "chug, chug" of her motor gradually 
becomes inaudible in the distance. 



IV 



The mist had crept over the land and hidden the low- 
lying parts of the coast from view. Unhealthy-looking 
and yellow, the rising sun gleamed in sickly fashion 
through the curtain of moisture. The Porcupine glided 



234 KEEPING THE SEAS 

out of harbour past the allied squadron, and in an hour 
she was lost to view. 

The captain was glad to be quit of Kouro-Bamba, its 
climate and baleful influence over his crew. As the days 
passed, he noted with satisfaction the old sea-fresh look 
coming back to the men. The work was better done, 
the guns better kept, and gradually the old efficiency 
returned, and that "seek out and destroy the enemy" 
kind of keenness began to show itself. 

The days were spent at exercises and drills, and in the 
dog watches men were to be seen boxing, wrestling and 
fencing, or performing gymnastic feats on the parallel 
bars and vaulting horse. The captain yearned for an op- 
portunity of testing the Porcupine against an equal foe. 

It was one day when theR.N.R. lieutenant was on 
watch that a strange ship came in sight. Something 
about her appearance prompted him to send the messen- 
ger down to the lower bridge for the captain. The latter 
came up and brought his glasses to bear upon the dis- 
tant hull. At first glance there seemed nothing amiss, 
but the R.N.R. officer pointed out certain suspicious 
details. There was much in what he said, and a few 
seconds later the alarm bells and rattlers called the 
"Porcupines" to quarters. 

There was little wind, and the long ocean swell alter- 
nately revealed and hid the hull of the suspicious vessel. 
The Porcupine knew what vessels and convoys should 
be met with, and the stranger was certainly not one of 
them. 

The two vessels approached on slightly converging 
courses, and then the Porcupine drew ahead, and got the 
mysterious steamer's masts in line. From a distance of 



KEEPING THE SEAS 235 

several miles she flashed the two-flag signal, which to 
all the seamen of the world signifies "stop instantly." 
The stranger steamed steadily on. The signal was 
repeated by flags, by long and short notes on the syren, 
and was flashed unmistakably on the searchlight. In ad- 
dition a blank charged was fired. The stranger ignored 
the Porcupine's signals, and continued on her course. 
The Porcupine remained a couple of miles ahead, and, 
after a reasonable period, another gun belched forth its 
electric-yellow flash, and a white column of water spurted 
up about two hundred yards clear of the oncoming 
steamer. She turned immediately to port and brought 
her starboard side towards that of the Porcupine. The 
Ships were now not more than 3,000 yards apart. 
Suddenly five whitish-yellow spurts of flame flashed 
from the stranger's side, but before the missiles reached 
the Porcupine an answering five crashes announced that 
the British ship had likewise fired a salvo, for the Irish 
first lieutenant had been controlling since the call to 
action stations sent men scurrying to their guns. The 
stranger's range was known to a yard or so at the instant 
the word to shoot was passed. Almost simultaneously 
five weird sounds told the captain that the stranger's 
salvo had struck the sea. He knew well that "ker- 
hook-ah" plunk of the misses. The salvo had fallen 
splendidly together, but for the Porcupine splendidly 
short ! 

An indescribable thrill passed through the captain's 
breast — it was the ecstasy of sea-fighting, which had been 
denied him for so long. It almost took his breath 
away, and he smiled with sparkling eye at the navigator. 

"We shall get a good scrap now, pilot; this is a fight- 
ing Hun," he said. 



236 KEEPING THE SEAS 

The nagivator had no time to answer, for a cheer 
broke from somewhere abaft and below them, and the 
yeoman — "our Mr. Smith," the most be-medalled man 
in the ship — with a dry grin, reported : 

"Two 'its, sir." 

Another salvo crashed forth. 

"Three 'its, two short shots," the yeoman reported, 
and, as he spoke, the order "rapid independent, com- 
mence," was passed to the starboard guns. 

The range and rate had been carefully estimated and 
passed, and the fire became rapid and fierce. The two 
ships preserved their relative bearings, steaming on the 
arc of a circle about two miles in diameter. It was 
remarkable how they maintained their distance. 

From the Porcupine's bridge dull red flames and 
yellow-brown smoke could be seen rising from the 
stranger, which told of the damage she had suffered. 
The long-drawn, hissing whistle of the enemy's shell 
spoke of harmless misses, but the slowing down of the 
Porcupine's fire revealed the fact that she, too, had 
been badly hit. 

"Our Mr. Smith" stood slightly above the captain 
and the navigator. Smith was a pensioner — and older 
than any of the officers — and he was almost fathering 
the fight. All the "Porcupines" were proud of him and 
of his fighting record. His eyes saw everything that 
happened to the enemy. What his eye saw as he looked 
aft he did not report. He knew that the casualties were 
dreadful, but he was quite confident as to the result, 
and would not ruffle the coolness of the captain nor the 
precision of the orders that come down from the fire 
control. He swanked around on his little platform 
with his telescope waving about, and in jerky phrases 



KEEPING THE SEAS 237 

told what he saw to those on the bridge just below 
him. 

The captain and navigator looked at one another with 
grim smiles, for the smell of burning paintwork was com- 
ing up to their nostrils, and it was plain to them that 
hits were being registered although, in the smoke and 
deafening noise, the two men could not tell where. 
Messengers were sent to enquire, and they slithered down 
the ladderways and stepped over dying men as they 
went. The navigator confirmed the yeoman's state- 
ment that the enemy's fire was slackening. He marked 
the gun flashes, and noted that her after guns were 
silent. 

"Concentrate more on the forepart of her," ordered 
the skipper to the fire control. 

The necessary adjustments were made and suddenly 
the yeoman, excited for the first time, shouted : 

"A torpedo, sir." 

He pointed with his telescope, his arm extended, and 
although it would spoil the shooting, the captain altered 
away. The torpedo broke surface, owing to the swell, 
then tearing along with incredible swiftness, it made 
direct for the Porcupine. But the alteration in helm 
had been sufficient, and the deadly thing passed harm- 
lessly away to starboard. 

The enemy turned her stern to the Porcupine. She 
was either seizing the opportunity of ramming, or wished 
to bring her other side to bear at a greater distance. The 
skipper of the British ship decided to give his other 
battery a chance, and continued round under starboard 
helm, a desultory, ding-dong fire continuing in the 
meantime. But the range opened considerably in the 
process, and the heavier guns of the enemy made the 



2 3 8 KEEPING THE SEAS 

better shooting. Two great rents appeared on the port 
quarter of the Porcupine before she straightened up, and 
all the after part of her upper deck was a burning wreck. 
The stokers' fire brigade rushed to the scene and fought 
a battle of their own — a grim battle against the fire-fiend 
made more perilous by the danger of exploding ammuni- 
tion. Nobody saw them, and nobody would ever know 
how heroically they fought. 

The captain's manoeuvre had disappointed him, but 
he was glad to give the other battery its opportunity. 
The men there had been restless with that rather fearful 
expectancy that is born of inactivity in action. Fighting 
is nothing when men are hitting back, and when they 
know their blows are telling. It is the period of waiting 
to join in the fray that tells. 

There was a little flutter of white on board the strange 
ship. At first it was taken as a signal of surrender, but 
it was nothing of the sort. The enemy was hoisting the 
white ensign of the German Imperial navy, with its 
sombre black cross. A further challenge to the Porcu- 
pine, and an unmistakable indication of a worthy foe. 
The German, for some reason, had not hoisted his col- 
ours before, but he had now thrown aside the mask and 
shown his adversary that he meant to fight it out. 

A little more manoeuvring, and the Porcupine port 
guns all spoke at once. The enemy was steaming away 
with his stern towards the British ship. His fire ceased 
momentarily, but he swung further round to port, and 
all his guns from that side opened fire simultaneously. 
The range closed, for the Porcupine was easily the faster 
ship, and she approached so that her five guns on the 
one side bore. Her shells went crashing into the enemy, 
and the fire was returned with fury. The vessels 



KEEPING THE SEAS 239 

approached to within a mile, and it seemed impossible 
to miss, but shells flew over, and shells flew short, for the 
swell made the aim more difficult. The pungent odour 
of burning paint filled the air, torpedoes were fired from 
both vessels, as chances offered, but the heaving sea upset 
their accuracy, and the fight was essentially one of 
gunfire. The laughing gaiety of the Porcupine's men 
had disappeared and given place to grim, determined 
fighting. The speed of both ships had dropped, and 
steam, smoke, and flame seemed to envelope everything. 
Communications had all been shot away, and bloody, 
grimy men ran hither and thither with their messages, 
to find out, to report, and to take directions from the 
bridge. The enemy was burning furiously amidships, 
and his after guns had again been put out of action. 
His bow guns kept pounding away, however, almost 
always hitting, and one shell tore its way through the 
Porcupine's chart house, exploded, and shattered the 
lower bridge. The navigator ran with the captains' 
coxswain to steer from the after position, but steer- 
ing was well-nigh useless, for the ship had nearly 
stopped. 

A dirty, blood-bespattered wretch flopped, Lord 
knows how, onto the upper bridge. It was the Irish first 
lieutenant. He had slid from the control position aloft 
by a fighting stay down to the captain. 

"The ship's sinking I think, sir," he said. "The 
stern's all under water and " 

He broke off suddenly, for the attention of both of 
them was attracted by a long, low flash, and a cloud like 
a dust storm. The enemy ship had disappeared. 

The sub, a mere boy, appeared on the bridge, after 
being nearly crushed by No. 1, who was off down the 



2 4 o KEEPING THE SEAS 

ladder at break-neck speed, with the intention of stop- 
ping the gaping wounds, and shoring up bulkheads 
afresh. The boy pulled himself together, and told the 
captain what he had done. His voice sounded strange 
and high-pitched in the stillness, for the crash of the guns 
had ceased. It was he — the sub — who had given the 
death blow to the raider by means of the last torpedo. 
Assisted by a giant seaman, the "Rot des zig-zag eurs^ 
already referred to, he had accurately laid the tube, and 
fired at the blazing German. The explosion must have 
caused her magazines to blow up, for the enemy ship 
had just vanished. 

The skipper's delight was short-lived, for it was clear 
that the Porcupine herself was doomed. He made his 
way aft, and his feet went from under him more than 
once in the slippery mess of blood. The signal to 
abandon ship was given, and out went the rafts for 
none of the boats would float. It was only a matter of 
minutes before the ship must go under. 

The surgeon, in long white operating cloak, blood- 
smudged but alert, was directing the evacuation of the 
wounded. The patient, quiet maimed ones lay yellowy- 
white and still. Few of them would live on the rafts, 
but they could not be abandoned. 

A stoker came up with a message, and saluted with a 
coal-dirty hand. 

"What do you say? Speak up man," for the captain 
could not understand his faltering whispered sentence. 

"The chief engineer wants to say good-bye." 

"What's wrong with the man, he's blubbing?" 

The captain and navigator questioned him, then they 
dashed below to find the engineer lieutenant, cheer- 
ful, but mortally wounded. His men had been sent 






KEEPING THE SEAS 241 

away, but two E.R.A.'s* remained, begging him to let 
them carry him. 

"It can't be done," he said, and he was right. Fear- 
fully wounded, the poor fellow gripped at a metal rail. 
Water was pouring down the sides of the engine room, 
and at one end men's bodies were floating. The skipper 
and his companion bent over the wounded man. It was 
hopeless to save him. He smiled affectionately at his 
captain. 

"Have we sunk her?" he murmured. "I oughtn't 
to ask, for otherwise you wouldn't be here." 

A little groan — a great gulping sob — the dying man 
turned his head away and back again. 

"Don't forget the engine-room when you send in your 
despatch, sir — get the chief E.R.A. promoted — and tell 

" but the poor fellow was gone before he could 

complete his message. 

The two officers and the E.R.A.'s moved up the ladder- 
way, and hardly had they reached the upper deck when 
the Porcupine went down by the stern. Those who 
had got clear on the rafts saw her ram bow thrust up 
from the water, and the toss of her proud victorious 
head as she went to her doom. The men noted that 
brave toss of the head and they burst into cheers. 

The captain, first lieutenant, navigator and E.R.A.'s 
found themselves swimming in the sea, but there was 
plenty of wreckage, and it was not long before eager 
hands pulled them on to one of those little life-saving 
rafts which are known as Carley floats. 

Within sight were other rafts appearing and disap- 
pearing in the swell. There was no food, and no water to 

* Engine Room Artificer. 
16 



242 KEEPING THE SEAS 

drink. In a few hours the effects of exposure in the 
tropical sun began to tell, and some men were sick from 
the effects of excitement, heat, and the perpetual ocean- 
heaving. Rafts have a very different motion from that 
of a ship. Night fell and the officers passed the time 
discussing the fight and their chances of being picked 
up. The chances were fairly good because, on going 
into action, a wireless message had been sent out to the 
other searching ships. They decided that it was a ques- 
tion of holding out, and that for the present there was no 
reason to fear that they would not be observed. 

The battle with the raider was fought and re-fought 
again. Excitement was still buoying up the men's spirits 
and they kept a sharp lookout for signs of any German 
survivors, earnestly hoping that there were some, if only 
for the sake of comparing notes! Their interest in life 
was great, but they dreaded the rising of the fierce, 
tropic sun. 

The second day began, and their spirits fell. The 
sun beat down upon them with an intensity that was 
almost insupportable, and their thirst was terrible. 
Some became delirious. The skin of their faces and 
hands peeled and cracked. The sea, however, was 
calmer, and the other rafts were still in view. How few 
the survivors were. Certainly not more than a quarter 
of the ship's company remained. 

The second day passed and the sun crept slowly down 
towards the purple sea. Suddenly the captain leapt up 
and pointed towards the red gold orb. 

"It's all right men," he cried, "there's smoke rising 
out there across the sun." 

Soon the smoke was visible to all of them, and before 
daylight vanished the thin masts of an approaching 






KEEPING THE SEAS 243 

destroyer were seen. She came steadily towards them, 
and presently her camouflaged upper works hove in 
sight. Then the beat of her propellers was heard. A 
shrill whistle from her syren was greeted by a feeble 
cheer, for the survivors knew that they were seen. 
Another few minutes elapsed and then the graceful hull 
of a large United States destroyer showed broadside on 
as she stopped and lowered her boats. 

The Irish first lieutenant gave vent to a cracked 
shriek, and seized the skipper's hand. The skipper 
looked at him apprehensively fearing that he had gone 
mad and that the rescuers had come too late for him at 
any rate; but the Irishman was merely in a hysteria of 
joy. He threw back his head and displayed a double 
row of strong white teeth, which contrasted strangely 
with the black, unshaven chin and the deep red bronze 
of his sun-baked face. He squeezed the captain's hand 
with what little strength remained to him, and, looking 
knowingly into his eyes, said : 

"I'm glad the lobster kicked." 



CHAPTER XVI 

H.M.S. "Active" 

No one who has not been intimately connected with con- 
voys can properly appreciate the work of the mercan- 
tile marine. I remember how furious I was on receiving 
my appointment to H.M.S. Active; I might perhaps 
have commanded her before I ever reached the dignity 
of four stripes, when I was attached to the Dover 
Patrol, but I preferred at that time the more active 
employment with destroyers, which, with their greater 
speed and more continuous patrols, gave one a better 
chance to fall in with enemy vessels. 

However, people do not make their own appointments 
in war time, or even in peace time for that matter. At 
the beginning of April, 191 8, I joined the Active at 
Queenstown and weighed in with the new and important 
work of convoys. All the Allies owe those responsible 
for inaugurating the convoy system a debt of gratitude 
that it will be difficult to repay. 

.1 spent some days studying the conduct of our sea 
borne supplies in convoys of slow ships, and in a very 
short time I realised that the Admiralty had selected the 
Active for this work because she was in every way suited 
for it. She was of over 25 knots speed and one could 
handle her like a picket boat. The Active was a sister 
ship to the Saucy Arethusa of Heligoland fame; she 
carried ten 4-inch guns, was of 3,440 tons displacement, 

244 



KEEPING THE SEAS 245 

and was capable of steaming 4,260 miles without re- 
fuelling. Although she looked very much like a des- 
troyer, she was over 400 feet long and many a time 
our own submarine fellows told me that they had mis- 
taken her for one of the "Yankee" destroyers. The 
man I relieved in command of her was Captain Gordon 
Campbell, V.C., D.S.O., and never in my life have I 
walked on board a more efficient ship; so well were the 
officers and ship's company acquainted with their work 
that there never was any necessity for me to try and 
shake them up. In consequence I found that I had 
much time for myself and, previous to leaving with my 
first convoy, I had plenty of leisure to study the experi- 
ence of others which was handed out to us by a well- 
organised Admiralty in what one may call "convoy 
tablets." The confidential books on the subject were 
made out in different languages and they contained such 
useful information, that when I met the skippers of my 
first lot of ships at a conference, I seemed to have every- 
thing at my finger's ends, after reading the books once 
through. 

I took over command of the Active at Queenstown, 
and as my first convoys did not sail for something like 
three weeks from this date, I found myself with a certain 
amount of leisure and, what is more, I found myself 
again within the clutches of Admiral Sir Lewis Bayly, 
who still commanded on the coasts of Ireland. I need 
hardly say that I profited tremendously by my second 
short period of service under this great British sailor; 
one never met him without learning something; one 
never left him without admiring him more, and when the 
Active finally sailed away to Berehaven and thence to 
Liverpool, I had a bubbling hope in my heart that it 



246 KEEPING THE SEAS 

would not be long before Admiral Bayly hooked me in 
again as a submarine hunter under his immediate super- 
vision. Alas ! this was not to be, for although, I believe, 
he made frequent application for my services, the Active 
was soon doing very good work escorting convoys of 
twenty to thirty ships upon the ocean highways and en- 
suring them of protection against gunfire attack by what 
can only be described as submarine cruisers. 

Before leaving Queenstown we docked our ship and 
prefected her anti-submarine devices. There was a 
strike on at the time; I did not bother my head much 
on the subject; I only knew that a number of people 
were not working and their places were taken by smiling 
and willing sailors from His Majesty's ship Active, who 
were as anxious as the Admiral himself to get on with 
the war. 

The Active was based on Gibraltar for the future, and 
her principal duty was to act as ocean escort to the slow 
convoys which I have already mentioned. We ran in 
harness with H.M.S. Adventure and the two American 
cruisers, Birmingham and Chester. I had a great number 
of officers in the Active, and no captain in this world 
was ever better served than I was in that ship. I had 
made up my mind to hate the Active, but without any 
exaggeration I may say that I loved her officers and men. 
Theye were a real fine lot; zealous, efficient, and smiling 
describes them very truly. 

The convoy conduct was of vital importance to the 
Allies. We in the ocean escorts knew it, the merchant 
men knew it and the enemy knew it. For us in the 
Active it had its own peculiar adventure, which savoured 
of rat-hunting. No ship in the world could have been 
more suitable for the work than that which I com- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 247 

manded, she turned more easily than a destroyer and 
slithered through and around the convoys like a collie 
rounding up a flock of sheep. I became very enthusiastic 
over the convoy work, particularly no doubt on account 
of my admiration and affection for the senior service, the 
merchant service — I take it the ark was not a man-of- 
war. My association with the skippers, mates and 
engineers, with whom I came in contact, brought me 
back to my sub-lieutenant days when the monotony of 
peace-time navy drove me to the Antarctic as second 
mate of the relief ship Morning. 

The first convoys I took consisted of larger ships than 
usual; in fact some of them were liners; but my subse- 
quent flotillas of merchant ships for the most part con- 
sisted of 7-knot tramps, laden with coal or grain. In 
each convoy was a Commodore, usually an R.N.R. 
commander, and a vice-commodore, generally selected 
because he had seen much convoy service. The convoys 
were not confined to British and Allied ships, and so we 
frequently had Norwegians, Danes and Swedes with us. 
The conference of masters before we set out were just 
little sailor "at homes." The captains smoked their 
pipes and listened to the commodore and myself explain- 
ing our plans for the conduct of the slow-moving mer- 
chant fleet, which was about to embark on another 
"gauntlet" voyage. We always had a perfect under- 
standing at these conferences; and, although I was in 
most cases the youngest skipper present, I was well- 
known to many of the captains already, for I had mixed 
with them in the uttermost corners of the earth. I had 
met some in New Zealand, some in Australia, while 
others I had travelled with to Cape Town, Ceylon and 
New York. Then there were Worcester boys with whom 



248 KEEPING THE SEAS 

I had been at school, and we all had a common object — 
to oust the hated Hun. 

With so many different types of vessels, varying in 
speed, in shape and manoeuvring qualities, the station 
keeping and alter-course movements were not always 
easy; but the intention throughout was to do our best 
and the result, as far as the merchant service was con- 
cerned in convoy work, was excellent. 

I invariably promised at these conferences that if a 
ship were torpedoed her crew should be picked up. It 
was clear that with my twenty-five knots I could make 
things most unpleasant for the U boat, for I was full of 
anti-submarine appliances. Explaining matters to them, 
they soon realised the splendid manoeuvring qualities of 
the Active. I accepted all the responsibility for collision, 
pointing out that I could hardly do less with such high 
power in a nut-shell; and it was definitely laid down at 
these conferences that the Active gave way to every- 
thing, which, considering her vastly superior speed, was 
certainly as it should be. 

Admiral Duff had arranged for the convoys to be 
accompanied by one or two large patrol gunboats, of 
which nearly forty were constructed in 19 17-18, and 
whenever available, one of these followed astern of the 
convoys to succour and save life if the occasion de- 
manded it. 

I thoroughly enjoyed my convoy time. It brought 
me new friends, new experiences, and developed new 
sympathies, for I widened my horizon of acquaintances 
and learnt to know still fresh types of the men who were 
winning the war. My knowledge of Danish and Nor- 
wegian gave me as friends such men as commanded the 
little steamers Helge, Ruytenfjeld and Storfjeld, all 




!z; 



W 

w 

w . 

D M 

Q g 
w p 

< 

o 
o 

H 
O 
M 



£ 



< 



KEEPING THE SEAS 249 

Norsemen with the real sea instinct and true sailor con- 
tempt for the German submarine and all its dirty ways. 
Many of the skippers with whom I came in contact had 
been torpedoed three times; and while at Milford, on 
one occasion a merchant captain came to the Admiral's 
office, fresh from a torpedoed ship with his clothes still 
wet upon him, and asked for another command. There 
is no need to emphasise one's enjoyment in working with 
men like these. 

Looking back on that time, I often imagine myself 
breathing again the black coal smoke which filled my 
nostrils from the funnels of the rusty tramp steamers. 
The smoke was often wafted over my bridge as my 
dainty cruiser worked her way through the columns 
of crawling vessels as they gradually made their way 
over the face of the great waters. After each meeting 
with the masters one became more efficient and one's 
convoys were better ordered and controlled; after each 
voyage one learnt to appreciate better and better the 
admirable qualities of the men to whom I refer. The 
world owes them something! 

There was little I could do for these people to make 
their lot a brighter one. I tried to think out everything, 
and I only hope I succeeded. If high spirits and enthu- 
siasm count, we were not failures. We were full of buck 
in the Active. Whenever we hauled down a signal, the 
executive for carrying out the ordered movements was 
a cock-a-doodle-do on both syrens, and this would be 
repeated right through the convoy flotilla. We never 
made signals in the afternoon unless they were absolutely 
necessary, for there was much night work, and it was 
better that people should be undisturbed and allowed 
to get their heads down. 



2 5 o KEEPING THE SEAS 

The convoys were worked entirely without lights. 
Speaking generally they were too slow to zig-zag, but fast 
ships if available, would zig-zag on the flanks and across 
the rear. The Active had no particular station; we kept 
clear of everybody and usually worked between the 
convoy and the sun, when its altitude was not great. 
And we zig-zagged around in a way that earned for me 
the name of the "zig-zag king." When there was any 
moon, we of course reversed the process, and got on the 
side of the convoy furthest from that celestial body. 

Our signals were nearly always marked by their 
politeness, except when vessels showed lights at night, 
which I am glad to say was not often. When it did 
happen, I used to charge right through the convoy at full 
speed and getting quite close to the offending ship, make 
a series of toots and groans on fog-horns, syren and 
whistle. This may or may not have been the correct 
procedure, but it always had the effect of bringing the 
skipper to the end of the bridge in some kind of fright or 
rage. A short megaphone conversation would follow, 
the offending "glim" would be "doused," other men 
would look round their ships to make certain no lights 
were showing, the Active would slither away in the dark- 
ness, tranquillity would be restored, officers of watches 
would call for the requisite increase of speed to get back 
into station before they were found out by their now 
awakened skippers, and in a few minutes the panic would 
be over, night watchers would return surreptitiously to 
the solace of their pipes, and in the stillness of the night 
the thud, thud, thud of big propellers would faintly 
make itself heard, like the muffled ticking of a large 
clock. 

When approaching and leaving the English and Irish 



KEEPING THE SEAS 251 

Channels, the convoys were accompanied by what was 
known as the danger zone escort. This meant that a 
number of mosquito craft buzzed round our flanks and 
across our path, and in this connection I may be par- 
doned if I mention Captain Frederic A. Whitehead, 
Captain Reginald Henderson and Paymaster Captain 
H. W. E. Manisty, who all contributed to the perfect 
convoy organisation with which it was such a pleasure to 
be associated. The danger zone escort varied very much, 
indeed my first convoy was escorted out into the Atlantic 
by five beautiful American destroyers of the most 
modern type. When approaching Gibraltar, I found to 
my dismay, that the destroyer escort which was to help 
us through the Straits was not worthy of the name. 
It was, nevertheless, all that the Admiral could give us. 
We were met there by three funny old steamers that 
could hardly keep up with the convoy (it happened to 
be a fast one). I signalled to them, "Where is destroyer 
escort," and when they replied, "We are," I was tempted 
to answer back, "Hitch on behind and we will tow you 
into port." 

What a joy it was to arrive in Gibraltar, after the 
drearier patrols of more northern waters, with so much 
rain, gale and fog. The climate was exquisite. When 
I brought my little ship up to her buoy in the protected 
harbour, I received for the first time in the war the signal 
to let fires die out. The officer commanding at Gibraltar 
was Rear-Admiral Heathcoat S. Grant, C.B., who had 
lately been King's Harbourmaster and Rear-Admiral at 
Dover. He had under his command British, American, 
Brazilian, Italian, French, Japanese and Portuguese 
units, and I think they appreciated him as much as I 
did myself. He and his staff did all they possibly could 



252 KEEPING THE SEAS 

to study the comforts of the sea-going units, and in the 
whole time I was under his command, I was only once 
called upon to do any work outside of my own special 
convoy and patrol duty — it became necessary for me to 
sit on a court-martial. At Gibraltar we kept fit with 
plenty of tennis and swimming and, taking it all round, 
we generally got a week in England and five or six days 
at Gibraltar every month. It was a splendid rest cure. 

Of my ship-mates in the Active I cannot speak too 
highly. I grew young in their company, and to command 
them was a pleasure. We had an invariable rule that no 
intoxicating drinks were ever allowed at sea, and on this 
account it never became necessary for me to lay down a 
special wine limit for anyone. I am a great believer in 
a glass of wine at times to gladden the heart of man, 
but I hope that any occasional references to gin and 
cock-tails will not lead my readers to suppose that the 
naval officer indulges much in alcohol. 

The reaction and change from the more exacting 
duties of the Dover Patrol to the gentle and pleasurable 
convoy work in the vicinity of Gibraltar were certainly 
good for me as for the ship's company in general. 
Glorious weather and sunlit seas were a relaxation, and 
the increased leisure time here meant that we regained 
our pre-war physical fitness, for it must always be re- 
membered that no amount of fresh air and sea time will 
compensate for the lack of good physical exercise to 
which we are accustomed in the Navy generally. 

We escorted 182 ships in the Active. They were 
divided up into twelve convoys, and our record was 
nothing to be ashamed of. For our crest we had a 
tortoise, which was intended to be symbolical of our rate 
of progress; our losses were nil, our collisions nil, and 



KEEPING THE SEAS 253 

no convoy escorted by the Active was ever late on the 
pre-arranged rendezvous time. It seems a bit "blowy," 
but I would rather be able to say that than tell of gallant 
rescues of crews whose ships I had lost in my convoys 
by torpedo or collision. We certainly were lucky. 

Here again my sleeping bag came in, but it was used 
under far more comfortable conditions than those which 
obtained on the Active's upper bridge, and at night I 
lay on my bridge in this, ready for any surprises. For 
the most part we were blessed with fine weather and I 
used to lie peacefully in my bag, with a glorious star-lit 
ceiling forming a canopy over me. Those delicious 
people, the Active's officers, studied me and my comforts 
as if I had been a pet Pekinese instead of a somewhat 
exacting captain. Orders seemed to be breathed rather 
than shouted down the voice-tubes, for they certainly 
never disturbed me, and I only knew of the change in 
watches by the difference in the officer's features sil- 
houetted against the sky. The first and middle watches 
were kept by my two R.N.R. lieutenants, both of them 
splendid seamen, while Lieut. Despard, the first lieu- 
tenant, took on at 4 a.m. These three inspired me with 
confidence, and as far as the Active was concerned, the 
convoy business ran on cushion tyred wheels. At the 
least sign of a shower of rain a little awning was rigged 
over me by invisible signalmen, with deft fingers and 
noiseless tread. In short it was a good time to live 
through and one which left me only with affectionate 
memories of the "Active's," lock, stock and barrel. 

We were always glad to see ships make a second and 
third appearance in our convoys, and the same may 
generally be said of the convoy commodores too. When 
I left Dover I wished for something more stirring than 



254 KEEPING THE SEAS 

the Active, and it was not my fault that we got no 
fighting in the little ship. At the same time I always 
avoided submarines with the convoys, and they could 
often be dodged by using the frequent submarine reports 
that we were furnished with by wireless from shore 
stations, men-of-war, and merchant ships. I am particu- 
larly glad to have won through without accident or 
hitch. When the Armistice was signed I wrote to Cap- 
tain Whitehead about convoys and concerning my own 
affairs, and in my letter I said: 

"For the Active, Adventure, Birmingham and Chester 
I can certainly speak, and I may say that we four skippers 
felt that everything was done for us (thanks to the Con- 
voy Section and the Admirals of Gibraltar and Milford) 
to make our lot in this part of the war an exceedingly 
pleasant one. We have scarcely ever been called on 
to do anything outside our escort work. Our ships' 
companies have been rested and given leave, and I can 
think of no suggestion for improvement beyond adding 
to the ocean escort the safeguard of one or two craft 
such as the 'K' class gunboats. 

"I hope if you distribute any rewards, you will not 
neglect to remember the commanders of 'K' gunboats 
according to their work, bearing in mind this fact, that 
we in the cruisers have had good first lieutenants, good 
navigators, and a working proportion of really efficient 
watchkeepers. 

"With all good wishes and a final word of apprecia- 
tion of your own forethought and organisation, etc." 

The spirit of this chapter is a truly happy one, but 
one must not forget that my experience compels me to 
speak of the better weather. The transition from winter 
to summer itself made us all glad. The Armistice 



KEEPING THE SEAS 255 

came before we had had the dreadful winter buffetting 
that our friends in the little tramp steamers had ex- 
perienced all through the war. 

I never was much of an inventor, but I devised for 
graphic use in the ocean escorts and commodores' ships 
what was known as the tortoise board. This consisted 
of a large rectangular board on which were rows of small 
hooks. We had a box full of flat tortoises made of brass, 
with a hole through the head of each so that it could be 
hooked onto the board. On the back of each small 
tortoise was a white ground glass shape suitable for 
writing on in pencil. Each tortoise represented one of 
the ships in the convoy, and on receipt of the convoy 
papers it was the signal yeoman's . duty to write the 
name, speed, distinguishing signal and port of destination 
of each ship on a tortoise's back. He then hooked them 
on to the board in representative fashion so that we had 
our convoy in miniature before us on the bridge. If a 
ship dropped out of station the signalman of the watch 
unhooked the tortoise and placed him on a peg indicating 
his changed position. Those zig-zagging on the flanks 
could be moved out of the general formation. The whole 
idea was that the convoy should present as broad a front 
as possible and very close station was kept. This 
prevented submarines from popping up in the centre of 
convoys and loosing off torpedoes in all directions. 
The tortoise board amused the officers of the watches, 
and it certainly gave them all the information they 
wanted; for example, if the speed of the convoy was 
seven knots and a 10-knot ship dropped out of the 
station, she was quickly hustled back by station-keeping 
signal, whereas if a 7 ^ -knot ship dropped astern we were 
certainly more considerate and reduced the speed of the 



256 KEEPING THE SEAS 

convoy if, after a small megaphone conversation with 
her, we found she could not keep up. 

Of the convoy commodores, the best known to me was 
Commander William H. Kelly, D.S.O., late of the Royal 
Mail Steam Ship Line. His convoys were always 
magnificently managed. Kelly was not a young man, 
but he was sea breeze and salt junk right through besides 
being very quick brained. Whenever we learned that he 
was to be our convoy commodore there was great joy 
in the Active. The convoy commodores, like the cabinet 
ministers, had their own peculiarities. Some of them 
were "dead nuts" on stellar observation, and one could 
see them at dawn stealing out to the bridge ends to 
stalk the twinkling star with their brass telescope sex- 
tants. The navigation was usually easy enough, but 
we left nothing to chance, and the star chasing commo- 
dores had no intention of bringing their convoys into 
the narrow waters without making the most of the navi- 
gational aid afforded them by the occasional appear- 
ance of a peeping star when a blue patch occurred in the 
skies. We did not have much clear weather as a rule 
when approaching Ireland. Outward bound it was 
different, and clear star-lit nights were frequent. 

Kelly never took old, well-trained naval signalmen. 
Some commodores had a chief yeoman and many 
seasoned bunting-tossers ; but Kelly carried round with 
him three or four signal boys, and when I expressed my 
surprise at the signal staff supplied to him, knowing to 
what he was entitled, he informed me that he preferred 
the youngsters, because they did not do what they 
thought, but what he told them. He said he was there 
to talk to merchant seamen, and being a merchant sea- 
man himself he was well able to do it in his own salt 



KEEPING THE SEAS 257 

water way. There is no doubt Kelly had his signal boys 
trained to perfection. Whenever we made a message 
to him, the answering pennants fluttered in response, 
for those boys had eyes like hawks. I shall look out for 
them in the future. 

As may be gathered from this dissertation on convoys, 
we in the ocean escorts were hardly over-worked. The 
Active had a good long quarter deck and we had plenty 
of opportunity for keeping fit at sea. We used to play 
our own kind of medicine ball, which was after the fash- 
ion of tennis. We had a high net rigged up, four played 
at once and we tossed a ball weighing 30 pounds over this 
net and back again until we were wet through with 
perspiration. Sometimes we had shilling tournaments, 
which all helped to disperse the monotony of being some 
days at sea. Lieut. Bryant, R.N.R., who was a first- 
class sailmaker, always made the medicine balls for us, 
but they were not made in a minute. One one occasion 
I remember he had worked all day to get one completed, 
and when it made its appearance in the dog watches 
on our "tennis courts," it was greeted with shouts of 
admiration. But the shouts turned to groans when it 
disappeared over the side owing to a somewhat lusty 
heave in an unprotected direction. It was too much for 
me; I rushed up on to the bridge, hauled out astern of 
the convoy, called away the lifeboat's crew, stopped 
the ship and picked it up. So much for the protection 
afforded by the ocean escort ! In justice to myself, I 
must add that I knew there had been no submarine 
reports in our neighbourhood for some time. However, 
like other people, I had laid myself open to criticism if 
the facts of the case leaked out. I resorted to subter- 
fuge. I hoisted the signal RJE VIF, which indicates 

17 



258 KEEPING THE SEAS 

"man saved," so that any nervous gentleman in the 
crowd of ships about us might pardon us for stopping and 
lowering a boat when in this dreadful danger of being 
submarined. Up went all the little answering pennants 
and such was the friendly feeling prevailing in the con- 
voys that the little Danish steamer Helge hoisted DZA 
(Allow me to congratulate you) . 

19 1 8 was the year of rations and ration cards. I 
remember bringing an enormous ship, the Argyllshire, 
along in one of the small, fast convoys, and with her 
were five other ships, each one of which carried enough 
meat to give every individual in the United Kingdom 
a pound. I believe the Argyllshire was also full of frozen 
beef, and she could have more than done the same. 
The ships and their cargoes all got through safely to old 
England, and therefore that one little lot represented as 
much as all the meat coupons of our country for a month. 
The safe delivery of homeward convoys always left one 
cheered, and when we anchored off Pembroke or in 
Plymouth Sound, we had a glad feeling that we had 
helped to replenish the empty larder of those we loved 
and worked for. 

Long before the armistice was signed, the gradual 
but very marked decrease in the submarine sinking 
showed us that the menace no longer existed seriously. 
In May, 1 9 1 8, the Allies sunk or finally put out of action 
no less than sixteen enemy submarines, and although 
that number does not represent the monthly average for 
the year, it indicates that the submarine danger had been 
overcome, that the Allies were not to be starved out, 
and that we were keeping the seas. 

Having fairly mastered the subject of convoy work 
thanks to the efficiency of the merchant men themselves, 



KEEPING THE SEAS 259 

and the clear simple regulations and advice given 
in convoy memoranda, I found myself with very little 
to do when the Active came into harbour at the end of 
her escort trips. I therefore turned my attention to the 
lighter pleasure of picnics, summer football matches and 
any old thing that came along. We got to know a lot 
of people at Gibraltar and quickly turned our ship into 
a kind of Pickford's van. The families of those stationed 
at the Rock Fortress were practically cut off from the 
land, for parcel mails through Spain and France were 
quite impossible, and the opportunity of sending and 
receiving packages to and from England was of rare 
occurrence, unless the services of friendly men-of-war 
were utilised. Consequently, it was no usual thing for 
me to bring out a cabin-full of ladies' hats, skirts and 
underclothes, and I even purchased such things as patent 
leather shoes for the ladies at Gibraltar. My wife, 
fortunately, saw eye to eye with me in the matter, and 
realising the plight of the English colony, she used to do 
any amount of shopping for the ladies on the Rock. I 
am glad to say our combined efforts never landed us 
into incurring the displeasure of those we were trying to 
assist. We took all sorts of things out in the ship and 
we brought all kinds of things home. We got raisins, 
oranges, figs, dates, grapes, and melons from Gibraltar, 
beautiful cane chairs from Madeira, and even casks of 
port from Portugal and Spain. These articles were only 
carried in officers' cabins, which were never used at sea, 
when on principle we kept ourselves above the upper 
deck in order to be ready for action at all times. I 
remember once taking out a toy engine for the wife of 
a commander who had a three-year-old son. I brought 
this up in a carroge with many other things and landed 



260 KEEPING THE SEAS 

at the house she shared with the wife of the naval 
secretary, looking like Father Christmas, so laden was I 
with stores. I unloaded the engine from the little 
carriage, and wheeling it before me, was met by a little 
child. It was the daughter of the secretary, a little girl 
of two. She immediately fell in love with the engine 
and would not be separated from it until its lawful owner 
appeared on the scene. This little boy seized the engine 
and the baby girl was left screaming. It is difficult to 
please everybody. I had all sorts of adventures 
with this engine, travelling back to my departure port 
by crowded midnight train. However, I was not out 
to be defeated by these two children and that afternoon 
I called my painter and joiner' together on board the 
Active and explained to them the impasse that had arisen 
in the Admiral's secretary's house. All sailors love chil- 
dren, and these two appreciated the difficulty of the 
situation. Within forty-eight hours these two kindly 
sailor-men had constructed a toy engine, enamelled 
green and red, brass-mounted and with glass window 
ports. The engine was labelled "Active" in beautiful 
letters of bronze, and when completed it put the pro- 
fessional toy to shame. Some of the Active's officers 
took it up to the secretary's house with the best and 
most generous intentions in the world. But we failed, 
miserably; for when the first kid compared his engine 
with the beautiful amateur article fashioned on my ship, 
he was overcome by a furious fit of jealousy, and in spite 
of all our good intentions we left both children fighting 
and crying fit to break their hearts. 

Whenever the Active spent a Sunday in Gibraltar, the 
captain and officers gave a children's party, and the 
biggest children of all were the "Actives" themselves. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 261 

We usually borrowed the Admiral's barge and towed the 
ship's dinghy, laden with food and water, to the picnic 
rendezvous. If the picnic was a large one, we took the 
Blue Bird, as our steamboat had been christened, in 
addition to the barge. Although we called these picnics 
"children's parties" they were really Sunday outings for 
the prettiest girls in Gibraltar. We used to love these 
days. The dark blue and white enamelled barge was a 
magnificent steamboat, with shinning brass bell-mouthed 
funnel. The bright work on her was wonderful to look 
at. The young girls used to crowd on to her deck at 
the Ragged Staff steps at the appointed hour; and in 
their pretty gauzy dresses and dainty summer headgear 
they seemed to give the boat the appearance of a basket- 
ful of carnations. 

The "Actives" for these occasions discarded their 
naval uniforms and appeared at the landing stage carry- 
ing the objects requisite for the picnic. These always in- 
cluded a gramaphdne and records, bathing gear, a water 
polo ball, another ball for rounders, and a number of 
golliwog dolls, teddy bears and penguins — the prizes for 
the rag-time sports in which the party proposed to 
indulge. 

Everybody from the ship was there, except the officers 
whose day on it was, and they would give us word of 
greeting as we passed by the ship on our way to Algeciras 
or Sandy Bay, according to the spot we had chosen on 
the Spanish mainland. 

The admiral's secretary's wife chaperoned the "chil- 
dren." Skinner, the secretary, had lately been at Dover 
and we often contrasted these joyful times with the 
dark days of Dover." Although we were a good deal at 
sea in the Active, we appreciated the difference between 



262 KEEPING THE SEAS 

sea-keeping on a cruiser and tripping merrily across the 
five miles stretch of sun-lit sea that lies between Gibraltar 
and Sandy Bay. Sailors are only men after all, and we 
can be pardoned, perhaps, by those stern people, who 
think that we all should have been gloomy throughout 
the war, for spending our Sundays in harbour in such a 
joyful fashion. 

The "Actives" picnics were very well organised 
affairs. Several sailors came along with us, glad to get 
a day in the country and these men took charge of the 
commissariat. While the picnic party were bathing in 
the beautiful clear seas, they laid out the long white 
table-cloth, which they spread with seamanlike fore- 
thought on a big boat's awning, to keep the sand clear 
of the mess-traps. When the picnickers had had their 
lunch, the sailors feasted on what was left, and after a 
reasonable smoking interval, themselves plunged into 
the cool sea. 

Those bright summer days were oases in our lives, far 
away as we were from thoughts of war, from the sadness 
of those now almost daily sights, from those pitiful- 
looking survivors, wounded and maimed for life. One 
forgot for a time the wide-eyed, terror-stricken children 
some of us had seen in Belgium, we forgot that there were 
such things as broken-hearted women wailing over their 
dead; and when, as occasionally it did, a convoy of 
camouflaged ships passed on the southern horizon, we 
only pointed out to them and laughed gleefully as we 
dodged the water polo ball and sank our sun-browned 
bodies into the kindlier sea, the sea of a country at peace. 

The admiral at Gibraltar never left for such pleasure 
trips as these, though his three little girls often came 
with us. We did our best to get him away from the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 263 

Rock, but in this we were not successful. He encouraged 
us and all his keepers of the seas to get what pleasure we 
could during our days in port. The picnics were medicine 
for those in the patrol craft particularly, and we often 
were joined in these outings by men from the motor- 
launches and small destroyers based on Gibraltar. 

I had an old chief petty officer pal who sometimes 
steered the steamboat, and I had many a yarn with him 
concerning the war as carried on in the different parts of 
the earth. The old coxswain had lost his only son in 
the Dover Patrol; he himself was half blind, but out to 
do his best to help the show along, and release a younger 
man. He appreciated how much good it would do these 
young men to have a day away from war, and as he 
smoked his pipe or my cigars and boiled the water fol 
the bovril or cocoa that the bathers were to drink in 
our very well organised picnic, we talked of the losses by 
gun, by mine, night attack and collision on ink black 
nights in the distant Dover Patrol. Perhaps the cox- 
swain thought of these as he watched the brilliant col- 
oured bathing caps, white arms and pretty shoulders of 
those who came out as our guests, and the old man was 
glad to see this children's party so happy in its way. 

This man was typical of what the navy produces. He 
was one of nature's gentlemen and on such days as these 
of which I speak, I felt more like a son to the old fellow 
than one holding the dignified position of captain in His 
Majesty's Navy. 

The picnic parties continued right into the afternoon, 
when quaint sports were organised. All manner of 
games were played, more bathing, more games, tea and 
still more games, even to dancing on the shore to the now 
somewhat gritty tunes of the gramophone as the sand 



264 KEEPING THE SEAS 

grains were kicked into its mechanism and onto the 
records. And then home, by romantic moonlight, a 
happy and tired little party would go back across the 
calm summer sea. It was exquisite pleasure to us, and 
to me personally the wrinkled smile of the old coxswain 
at the polished brass wheel, peering through his little 
slits of eyes, was the greatest pleasure of all, for it was 
obvious that he loved it as much as we did ourselves. 

Songs would be called for, but volunteers were not 
usually forthcoming until Lieut. Bryant, R.N.R., our 
local "Old Bill," came to the rescue in his welcome 
way with all the sea "chanties" that he knew; so the 
Blue Bird's propellers beat and churned the quiet salt 
water to the glad chorus of such ditties as — 

" Away — ay — aie — oh, 

Away — ay — aie — oh, 

Sing fare thee well 

My bonny young gal 

For I'm off to the Rio Grande." 

The picnic party would break up at the Ragged Staff 
steps and the men would say good-bye to the beautiful 
flowers that had abolished war for the day. They would 
watch them out of sight as they faded away, crowded 
into the carroges and the admiral's motor-car, which took 
them to their homes. And then the "Actives" would 
have a wardroom supper in which their skipper joined, 
and thoroughly tired out, would sleep one peaceful night 
before putting out again to sea, lulled into dreamland by 
the metallic clink of the cable as its links stretched out 
and fell back against the buoy to which we rode. 

Spain was a happy hunting ground for the German 
and his propaganda, and although I can raise plenty of 
enthusiasm about this beautiful old-world land, I do 



KEEPING THE SEAS 265 

not propose to ask my readers to believe that the 
Spaniards helped England or the Allies much during the 
great war. No doubt the Germans could tell us some 
interesting stories concerning the use they made of the 
Hispanian coast line and territorial waters. In the 
vicinity of Gibraltar the Spaniards appeared to be pro- 
Ally rather than pro-German, but it was no uncommon 
thing for us to meet a lot of Huns in Algeciras. There 
was no mistaking them with their round Teuton heads 
and close-cropped hair. They always talked loudly in 
German, but I never heard of any fracas between the 
Allies and the Germans who came across one another in 
Spain. This was just as well for none of us were anxious 
to be interned, and we were there on sufferance. 

I brought home quite a number of German officers and 
men, prisoners of war from sunken submarines. They 
varied tremendously. We had a very nasty piece of 
work in the shape of Kapitanleutenant , a well- 
known murderer with a very bad reputation. He was 
of the true Prussian type, arrogant and insolent. One 
of our surgeons went to his cabin to see that he was 
propertly provided with bedding and good food on the 
day we left Gibraltar, where he had been embarked. 
This fellow was most insolent to the doctor and he had 
the audacity to insist on being given beer or wine to 
driuk with his dinner. I very soon set his mind at rest 
on the subject. 

We had another submarine captain on board at the 
same time, a lieutenant called Lauerberg, of quite a 
different type. He was a tall, clean-limbed sailor from 
the Baltic shore and we knew how clean his record had 
been, if one can call any German submarine captain's 
record clean. It was very difficult to exercise the 



266 KEEPING THE SEAS 

German prisoners while we were with our convoy. We 
had no wish for them to see how convoys were conducted 
and therefore it was necessary for them to take their 
exercise during the dark hours. 

On reaching the destroyer rendezvous we w r ere ordered 
in the Active to leave the convoy and proceed to Milford 
Sound at full speed, and once detached from the group 
of tramps and small steamers that formed our convoy, 
there was no need to keep the German prisoners under 
decks any longer. Lauerberg was allowed up on 
to the bridge as he had behaved extremely well during 
the homeward voyage. It was really the only cinder- 
free spot whilst we were advancing at 2^ knots. 1 
rather liked the look of him, and although I purposely 
refrained from putting any questions to him, he 
ventured a few remarks in tolerably good English and 
expressed thanks to me for the considerate treatment. 
He also told me what ships he had sunk and how he had 
destroyed them; and the less I asked him the more he 
told me, until at last I had heard the whole of his family 
history. He had been first lieutenant to the dis- 
tinguished German submarine captain Arnaud de la 
Perriere, who was celebrated in naval circles as a dashing 
and splendid fighter. It was Lauerberg's captain who 
put up a fine gunnery duel against one of the ocean 
escorts between England and Gibraltar late in 19 18. 
He was the German who disdained to torpedo merchant 
ships without warning. He worked his submarine 
practically as a cruiser and had with him one or two 
expert gun-layers from the High Seas Fleet. In place of 
torpedoes he carried an equivalent weight in 4.1-inch 
shell and cartridges. De la Perriere was, I believe, an 
Alsatian, he certainly was a sportsman, and although he 



KEEPING THE SEAS 267 

probably did more damage to Allied shipping than any 
other German naval officer, his name was spoken of with 
respect by those who kept the seas. It is a pleasure to 
write of a gallant adversary. He put up some splendid 
fights, and, if Lauerberg is to be believed, almost risked 
his ship in his endeavours to save the lives of non-com- 
batant seamen. A naval officer who speaks with some 
authority told me that, having got into wireless com- 
munication with De la Perriere, one of our own ships 
signalled to him, "Come over on our side." 

Lauerberg was telling me some of these things con- 
cerning the sinking of merchant ships and the rewards 
given by the Kaiser for such services, when suddenly 
the conning tower of a submarine was sighted in the dis- 
tance. I turned to Lauerberg and told him he must go 
down below, and his escort was about to march him 
away, when I saw he had something to say. So I 
informed him that if we were torpedoed I should be 
compelled to shoot him, lest any information should be 
given by him to the enemy, in the event of his recapture. 
Lauerberg shrugged his shoulders and I laughingly 
added that I had no fear of submarines, and that if I was 
successful in sinking the fellow we had sighted, I should 
give him a cock-tail when we arrived in port. This 
seemed to brighten him up a bit and he left the bridge 
consoled. The U boat proved to be the U.S. submarine 
A.L., 2, and old friend of mine with whom I exchanged 
greetings. I sent for Lauerberg again when we had 
passed and let him have a little fresh air. I also gave 
him some tea, now that I knew he was a disciple of De la 
Perriere. However, no sooner had he had this little 
meal than another submarine appeared, which I thought 
must surely be a German. I could not help laughing 



268 KEEPING THE SEAS 

at Lauerberg, who appreciated the humour of the situ- 
ation. Down he went again and we went full speed 
to the attack; again we were disappointed in our prey, 
for it turned out to be an upturned sea-plane, on which 
were two young flying officers. Once more Lauerberg 
was allowed to escape to witness their salvation. I 
told him not unkindly, that one of the first laws at sea 
was to save life, which of course he already knew. I 
also informed him that I should pick these two people 
up and if we were torpedoed he would probably lose his 
life, whereas if we saved these men, my joy would be 
so great that I would share my happiness with him and 
give him the whisky and soda which on principle I could 
not drink at sea. Lauerberg thought it a great joke. 
We saved the men and he got his drink, and as he laugh- 
ingly put it away he told my steward he hoped we would 
see some more upturned sea-planes very quickly. 

These two young Air Force officers had been three 
days and three nights without food. They were quite 
exhausted, but could still speak. They knew very little 
about ships, for they mistook the Active for the Maure- 
iama, and when asked why, one of them said he thought 
she was the only ship in the world that had four funnels. 
Imagine how our pride fell when, some days later we 
saw the picture of these young officers in the Daily 
Mirror, and that journal stated that they had been res- 
cued in the Irish Channel by a destroyer. Evidently the 
Active 'fell some' in the interval. 

I heard rather a good story in the Active about a 
hard-hearted cook and a little rat of a seaman who had 
joined for hostilities. The cook insisted on the dinners, 
when made up ready for cooking, being handed in at 
the galley by 8 o'clock in the morning. The little rat 



KEEPING THE SEAS 269 

came late and proudly displayed a sea-pie on which he 
had fashioned in wonderful sticks of paste "No. 16 
mess." The cook scowled at him and when the youthful 
seaman apologised, shouted at him, "I can't cook that, I 
can't cook that. Look at the clock, it is too late. I can't 
cook that." The youngster set the pie at the cook's 
feet and retired out of range, then turning with great 
impudence, "No cookie. I know you can't cook it. 
But give it its time." 

During the summer of 191 8 it became necessary for 
the Admiral at Gibraltar to send one of his ships to 
Madeira for a certain service, and we had the good for- 
tune to be detached from one of the convoys going west- 
ward across the Atlantic, to visit this garden island. 
The Madeira of peace times is one of the most fertile 
islands on the surface of the globe, and even in war time 
our despicable foe could not change its fertility or spoil 
it in any way. It is true that an enemy submarine had 
one morning visited Funchal, where it torpedoed certain 
ships lying at anchor in the bay and carried out a 
bombardment of the small, weakly fortified town. It 
was after all only a bit of show work to terrorise the 
inhabitants and to give German newspapers and the 
neutral press a half column on the subject of German 
sea-power. The submarine bombardment had little or 
no effect on the morale of the people of Madeira. They 
continued at their peaceful occupations with the same 
firmness of purpose that has always obtained in this 
beautiful island. 

When the Active arrived at Madeira it was nearly 
dark, for although we had no fear of enemy submarines 
I was not prepared to hazard a useful ship like mine when 
it was unnecessary. We remained therefore off Funchal 
only during the hours of darkness, and while the ship 



270 KEEPING THE SEAS 

lay at anchor the Blue Bird, armed with depth charges 
and bomb lances, patrolled in the offing. She was 
assisted by a motor launch, and it was made clear to 
me that the ship was invisible against the high back- 
ground of the mountainous island. 

A number of Madeira men surrounded the ship 
immediately after her arrival, and they exchanged the 
beautiful wicker chairs produced by the islanders for 
suits of clothing and other articles which were then 
unpurchaseable there. Clothing was almost impossible 
to obtain during the latter part of the war, for nothing 
but a small mail-boat ran between Madeira and Lisbon 
at this time. 

A great number of tunney are caught by the native 
fishermen, and we were glad to purchase a quantity of 
these, which are excellent dried or put up in tins. I 
shall never forget our visit to Madeira. I was not likely 
to, for I had tinned tunney for breakfast for fourteen 
days on end, since eggs and other suitable breakfast 
dishes were difficult to obtain from Gibraltar and the 
other ports we visited during the latter half of 191 8. 

On the 8th November, 19 18, the Active sailed as 
ocean escort for her twelfth convoy, which consisted of 
twelve moderate sized ships. It was touch and go for 
us whether we should leave England at all, for the 
Armistice was about to be signed. Knowing this, and 
that the German submarines would have their last 
chance to sink and murder and defile the laws of decent 
human beings, we in the Active were more alert than 
ever, for we thoroughly appreciated that the dav of the 
Prussian was past and that the sun was setting for ever 
for the U boat pirate and all his kind. It was to me 
the most anxious three days of the war, and even after 



KEEPING THE SEAS 271 

the Armistice was signed and thousands of wireless 
telegraphy instruments gladly sparked the news to those 
of us who were at sea, following our profession, I felt 
that it was necessary to continue with the same vigilance 
as I had always exercised before hostilities ceased, for I 
could not trust the enemy even after he had signed. 
We knew him too well. Although he was beaten fairly 
and finely by those who stood shoulder to shoulder and 
fought to the end for fairness and justice, we had seen 
too much of starving seamen, of corpses in open boats, 
and of neutral seamen who had rightly followed their 
calling at sea, stark staring mad with thirst and hardship 
when we rescued them. We kept our people ready, our 
look-outs watching and the men at their stations until 
the Active finally made her way back to England to pay 
off her crew and demobilise those very excellent fellows 
who had only joined for the war. 

I was indeed sorry I had never taken the little ship 
into action with the splendid fellows who supported me 
in her. The Active was the only ship that I commanded 
that I never took into action, I do not count of course the 
Seymour, which I only joined for passage, as it were. 

Three days after the news of the Armistice was 
received, I was ordered to disperse my convoy and pro- 
ceed to our base port at Gibraltar. We intercepted 
signals and we received information at this time that 
made it clear that Germany was being counted out 
and that the detested submarines were returning home 
on the surface, shouting "kamarad," as it were. We 
passed one in Gibraltar Strait with lights burning, two 
hours before dawn, and if I was guilty of any softening 
in my heart, perhaps it was then that I felt it. I remem- 



272 KEEPING THE SEAS 

ber my thoughts as we steamed close by her — what was 
she going home to? 

An hour or so later we had passed through the Strait 
and just before six in the morning, dropped anchor off 
the port. Gibraltar was so full of ships that there was 
no room for us inside. It didn't matter now, for the 
war danger was over. I had a cup of cocoa in the ward- 
room and smoked a cigarette with the night watchers 
and the navigator, and then I made my way aft into 
my cabin where, for the first time since July, 19 14, I 
undressed properly and turned into my bed, although 
in an open anchorage. 

The captious critic can say and think precisely what 
he likes, but as my head lay on the soft, clean pillow I 
put up a few words of prayer and thanked God that I 
had done my job honestly through the war. I noticed 
something wet and salt was trickling into my mouth and 
for the moment I felt ashamed. I switched on the light 
and recognised that it was only one of Old Neptune's 
little jokes — a few drops of spray had come through my 
scuttle to remind me of the sea patrols. 



CHAPTER XVII 

A Brazilian Coast Patrol 

Those of you who have read the chapter on "Bicky 
and the Big Guns" will recollect that I playfully talked 
about satellites and assassins I collected during the 
war; one of these I came across accidentally in a bar — 
a very respectable bar, it is true, but that is where I 
met him. His charming personality quickly commended 
itself to me, and in the course of conversation I learnt 
that we had common friends. I also learnt that the 
young man in question, Lieut. C. H. Pullen, R.N.V.R., 
was more than a master of the Portuguese language. 

Some people make opportunities; some seize oppor- 
tunities; while others cannot help themselves, they seem 
to trip and fall down on opportunities. I think I must 
be one of these, for here was the man I wanted. I had 
that day been ordered to Lisbon for the purpose of show- 
ing the flag; in other words, my dainty little cruiser was 
to make her appearance at the capital of Portugal, our 
oldest naval ally, to cement the Entente and to show 
courtesy and good feeling to our friends the Portuguese, 
as soon as possible after the signing of the Armistice. 

The "Actives" were not blessed with the gift of 
tongues, some of us had a kind of bowing acquaintance 
with French, and I fancied myself as a perpetrator of 
the Scandinavian languages, but here at hand ready to 
be plucked was the very flower we wanted to be the 
18 273 



274 KEEPING THE SEAS 

lily of the bouquet I proposed to hand to the Portu- 
guese. Pullen was splendid and nothing if not an 
opportunist. In December, 191 8, he was attached to 
the Brazilian naval squadron commanded by Rear- 
Admiral Pedro de Frontin, in the capacity of liaison offi- 
cer and interpreter. Whilst thoroughly happy and at 
home with his Brazilian naval friends, Pullen had tucked 
away in the bottom of his heart a great feeling of affec- 
tion for Portugal and all that was Portuguese, and 
perhaps a hankering after the greater joys of Lisbon, 
compared with the more simple joys of Gibraltar. 

It took us "one cock-tail minute" to frame our plans; 
no sooner had the last drop of the appetising beverage 
disappeared from our tiny glasses, than telephone bells 
were tinkling, naval secretaries were being interested, 
and in less time than it takes to tell, both the British 
and the Brazilian Admirals had consented to the rape of 
the liaison officer. Long before the good-hearted, gold- 
bound gentlemen had regretted their sudden consent, 
the Active was speeding westward through Gibraltar 
Straits and the iron-bound fortress of Gibraltar was 
being blotted out in the coal-black smoke cloud that 
trailed astern. 

I soon found that Pullen was one after my own heart, 
he had the face of an angel and the heart of a wasp. He 
was equal to anything, and although he appeared to be 
but a boy of twenty, he was nearly double that age, and 
had let no moss grow on him. 

In September, 19 14, Pullen found himself at Rio de 
Janeiro. He was in business on his own account, but, 
like every true Britisher, he felt the call to arms. Being 
a level-headed fellow, he quickly realised that his local 
knowledge and perfect Portuguese were an asset to the 



KEEPING THE SEAS 275 

Allies, and instead of rushing away to be turned down on 
account of possible physical disabilities by a somewhat 
eclectic War Office, he got into touch with the late 
Admiral Craddock, who then commanded our navai 
forces in the South Atlantic. 

Sir Christopher Craddock appreciated Pullen's offer 
to become an additional member of the local intelligence 
staff, and he received orders to travel on the north 
coast of Brazil, along the unfrequented routes, and to 
keep H.M. ships informed whenever possible of any 
enemy activity which he might observe or hear about. 
There were, of course, the possibilities of the Germans 
establishing fuel depots for submarines and above-water 
craft, besides which Pullen, with his extraordinary local 
knowledge could notify the navy if he discovered that 
the Kaiser's auxiliary cruisers and other vessels were 
making use of the unfrequented creeks, river mouths and 
harbours along the northern Brazilian coast. 

Of course the best way of gathering this information 
suggested itself to Pullen immediately, that is, by means 
of making patrol cruises with fishermen in thier boats 
living with them, talking with them, and dressing like 
them. It needed a considerable amount of grit to see 
this business through and Pullen, I am glad to say, had 
more than the requisite amount. 

To start with he cruised along the coast line of over 
1,400 miles from Pernambuco to Para at the mouth of 
the Amazon in open boats, accompanied by divers num- 
bers of Brazilian fishermen, who were for the most part 
negroes. It is doubtful whether his adventures would ever 
have seen the light of publicity, for he is an extremely 
modest man, but the atmosphere of the sea is poetical, 



276 KEEPING THE SEAS 

and once I had dragged Pullen from the quiet shelter 
of the overhanging rock fortress of Gibraltar, his sea 
instincts quickened once again and he remained with 
me on my little cruiser's bridge for hour after hour, 
listening to my stories and telling me some of his. He 
knew I had been an explorer and perhaps that is why 
he unburdened himself of some of his adventures, which 
to me were priceless gems of sea patrols and which I 
will try hard to remember and to set down as he gave 
me them. 

This long stretch of 1,400 miles, although thoroughly 
explored, was not visited by many strangers during the 
war excepting perhaps the larger towns of Natal, Ceara 
and Maranham. Straying from Rio de Janeiro, Pullen 
made his way to Pernambuco, purposely allowing him- 
self to get shabbier and shabbier, letting his beard grow 
and permitting his hands to brown and crack in the sun. 
Arrived at the latter port and having refreshed his mem- 
ory as to the position of certain interned German 
steamers, he got into touch with the owner of his first 
canoe. Money, as far as bargaining was concerned, had 
no value whatever, but after sundry drinks and a certain 
amount of cajolery, Pullen persuaded "Joao" to take 
him the 180 miles which made the first stage of his trip. 
This brought him to Cabedello, a small whaling station, 
where three German ships had taken refuge and were 
now lying interned. These ships were sending wireless 
messages out and causing local gossip which penetrated 
into certain parts of Brazil, as to their intentions and 
possible hostile action. Pullen nosed around and soon 
had separated the facts from the fiction, and it may be 
pretty correctly assumed that he was right when he re- 
ported that there was nothing but bluff being put up, with 



KEEPING THE SEAS 277 

the possible idea of keeping our activities somewhere in 
this direction and leading us away from the trail of big- 
ger game. He appears to have been very thorough in 
everything he did, but in order to achieve this thorough- 
ness he fell in with some nasty experiences. Watching 
the German steamers Persia, Minneberg and Salamanca, 
Pullen found himself on some nights camping on the hill- 
side without fire, with little food but green cocoa-nuts 
and nothing to drink but their milk. He could not lie 
on the burnt-up grassland of the hill-side for fear of the 
poisonous snakes which abounded in this particular dis- 
trict. He therefore spent the hours of darkness slung 
in a native hammock between two mango trees, almost 
eaten alive by myriads of mosquitoes. Our young friend, 
who had never roughed it in his life before, put up with 
unutterable miseries, but soft though his skin may have 
been his heart was tough enough to treat the attendant 
hardships with disdain. 

Having obtained the requisite information concerning 
the aforesaid steamers, Pullen shuffled off to his canoe 
once more and covered big distances either by sea or by 
trudging, limping or riding according to the nature of 
the coast and country. He reached Macau just before 
Christmas, 19 14, a good deal the worse for wear. At 
Macau the hot weather was at its height, the fierce 
Brazilian sun struck down on his back and shoulders as 
he travelled until poor Pullen was a mass of sores and 
blisters. Quite oblivious of the hardships which he had 
to face, he made his way along the coast line to Caicara, 
a distance which he laughingly described as "not far, 
about six days' riding." He was unaccustomed to riding 
and soon became saddle-sore; he was in such a sorry 
plight when he arrived at Caicara that he was too hurt 



278 KEEPING THE SEAS 

and burnt to lie down, so he spent four nights in this 
unvisited place crouched in a canvas deck chair, which 
he managed to obtain. 

Caicara is a fishing village, of say 350 inhabitants, 
and from what Pullen told me, it is safe to say that 
every single one of them paid him the doubtful com- 
pliment of calling on him to inspect. The natives 
chattering round in Portuguese, disgusted him with 
their garlic-charged breath, which permeated his nostrils 
almost like poison gas; their staccato notes grated on 
his ear-drums and their dirty fingers touched him all 
over, caressing him and pinching him to satisfy their 
curiosity for hours at a time. Pullen had no respite 
after his weary six days' mule ride. Even when the 
natives forsook him, he was not alone, for the mosquitoes 
soon found him out in his chair and stabbed him into 
what can only be described as a scarlet conglomeration 
of swellings. 

German colliers appeared and re-appeared off this 
fishing village, evidently anticipating a meeting with 
Von Spee. Pullen boarded one of these vessels in his 
role of Dago fisherman and obtained the information 
that the colliers had come to coal the Scharnhorst, 
GneisenaUf and other German cruisers. The collier cap- 
tain and officers interrogated all fishermen and although 
they treated them with scorn, it was obvious that they 
feared a meeting with English ships. 

Having found out what he could from the collier 
Patagonia, Pullen continued his trip northward, living 
under the same conditions of beastliness, until he arrived 
at Maranham, where he dispatched a cipher telegram 
to the British Legation at Rio, giving the information 
obtained by him up to date and advising that he was 



KEEPING THE SEAS 279 

about to commence the last part of his trip, which was 
to the Sao Joao group of islands, lying about 80 miles 
off the Brazilian coast. 

Before Lieut. Pullen arrived at Maranham he had an 
amusing experience which I cannot fail to put into 
this chapter. At practically every village he visited, he 
was stared at and surrounded by the inhabitants, who 
treated him as an object of interest. At Formosa he 
divided honours in this respect with a travelling priest, 
who on the principle of "cash down and no tick" eased 
his guilty conscience by baptising, marrying and con- 
fessing at the different villages he visited. He was a 
friendly creature and allowed Pullen to share a hut with 
him. The two slung their hammocks together as day 
drew to its close, and when Pullen had allowed the 
priest an hour in which to say his prayers and undress, 
he followed suit, but for some time was unable to sleep 
on account of the ecclesiastical snores. Nevertheless he 
fell asleep at last, leaving the kerosene flare burning, 
but suddenly awoke to find his reverend companion 
examining the contents of his dispatch case, which 
Pullen had left by his hammock. Divested of his official 
garb, the priest was not a pretty object, in fact he looked 
very much like a common cut-throat. The Englishman 
thought it best to keep quiet, and accordingly kept on 
breathing steadily, watching the Brazee through half- 
closed eyes. Having finished with the despatch case, 
the priest turned his attention to Pullen's prism glasses, 
but after examining them he put them down and returned 
to his hammock. After resting there a couple of 
minutes, the holy man got up again and, taking the 
binoculars, passed with them behind the division which 
sub-divided the hut, then went to bed again, and was 



2 8o KEEPING THE SEAS 

soon asleep and snoring. The opportunity was too 
good for Pullen, who quickly slipped from his net ham- 
mock, to retrive not only his prism glasses, but some 
chocolate bars, a pot of oxo, and other articles which 
had been extracted by the priest from his despatch case 
and hidden in the pouches of the latter's saddle. After 
that the Englishman slept with the replenished despatch 
case in his hammock. 

The next morning Pullen left early, but the Brazilian 
priest was nothing if not friendly, and insisted on seeing 
the Englishman away, offering him his blessing previous 
to his departure. Pullen could not help taking the 
binoculars out to gaze at some distant object. The 
priest's face was a sight for sore eyes; he said nothing, 
however, and the impression he left with Pullen was that 
his reverence was undecided as to whether the English- 
man possessed one or two pairs of glasses. The position 
for Pullen was somewhat uncomfortable ; had he accused 
the priest of stealing his goods, he would most likely 
have been murdered, for the incident took place at a wild 
coast village, where the influence of an unscrupulous 
priest would easily have been used to arouse the fears of 
the superstitious inhabitants against a suspicious 
stranger in their midst. 

From Maranham, Pullen commenced the last stage of 
his journey, bound as previously stated for the Sao Joao 
islands. It is safe to say that no Englishman had ever 
landed on these islands, and when he did so, Pullen took 
his life in his hands. Absolutely unarmed, he made his 
way to a settlement on the mainland, from which he 
obtained the services of a little sailing boat, manned by 
two half-caste native fishermen. The boatmen spoke 
and understood only Portuguese, and after much 



KEEPING THE SEAS 281 

argument and discussion they agreed to land the English- 
man on the biggest island; but they declared that 
nothing would induce them to land themselves; they 
asserted that the inhabitants of the Sao Joao group 
were "feroes," who would most certainly attack 
them. 

Quite undeterred, Pullen persisted, and after five days 
and five nights in the little boat, living on dried prawns 
and mangoes, of which they carried five hundred, he 
and his half-caste friends appeared off the hostile 
islands. Commands, entreaties, and promises were 
futile; nothing would induce the two Joses to remain 
an instant longer near the island than was necessary to 
put poor Pullen ashore. The natives selected a little 
point of land where it was clear of trees, and there was 
no chance of being rushed by the "feroes," and after 
cruising off and on for some time, and making quite sure 
that there was no ambush, the steersman suddenly put 
the helm up, ran the boat on to the beach; they then 
threw out Pullen's two bags and pushed him out after 
them. The sail was quickly lowered, and the two half- 
castes with feverish haste, thrust the boat off from 
the land, using long fishermen's poles. Once clear, they 
hoisted their big blue sail and the boat heeled over and 
was shortly a mere speck, silhouetted against the setting 
sun. Poor old Pullen — he described his feelings to me 
one night on the Active's bridge — loneliness was not in it. 
He felt afraid. No wonder. For, as he said, it 
wasn't a nice feeling — unarmed, night falling and little 
flitting shadows moving from tree to tree. It was no 
good being frightened though, for Pullen could only die 
once. He moved up towards some smoke, which was 
presumablythe site of the settlement which he had 



282 KEEPING THE SEAS 

heard about from the half-castes. Occasionally he got 
a glimpse of a running man, first to the right then to 
the left — there must have been several of them. As 
he advanced towards the smoke it soon became appar- 
ent that his arrival had been heralded by his nervous 
fellow-creatures, if such they can be called. 

I cannot do better here than insert a description of 
what followed, taken from one of Pullen's letters writ- 
ten to his mother. I am glad to have his permission to 
do so, for it will bring out better than any second-hand 
description of mine what actually happened on the Sao 
Joao islands. I am perfectly certain that my readers 
will find this extract of absorbing interest, and it will 
probably strike them as it has struck me, that if men 
like Pullen can be found, trained to business, expert in 
foreign languages, ready and willing as he was to serve 
their country in her greatest need, we Britons and Al- 
lies who have kept the seas, need never fear another 
serious attempt at subjection and world domination by 
our friends the enemy. Thank God we have such men 
as these and the Navy is proud to enrol them. Here is 
the quotation from the letter: — 

" The settlement on Sao Joao Island which I reached, 
consisted of a collection of about 400 grass huts, all built 
exactly alike and picturesquely grouped around a dirty 
open square. A larger hut covered with corrugated iron 
sheets was obviously the local pub, and towards this I 
made tracks, supremely self-conscious that I was being 
watched by the entire elite of the island, who, however, 
made no response to my somewhat forced attempt at 
cheery greetings, as I endeavoured to look as pleased 
as possible and carry as much "abandon" as circum- 
stances would permit. Standing and squatting all 



KEEPING THE SEAS 283 

round the entrance to the huts were the quaintest col- 
lection of human beings I think I have ever seen. The 
majority of them wore only a pair of shorts fastened 
below the knee with dried grass, but there were one or 
two in every five decently clothed in shirt and trousers 
made of sail cloth. They were all very powerfully built, 
their bodies were of a curious dark red brick hue and 
their faces a sickly yellowish colour, this jaundiced look 
being caused by their exaggerated fish diet. Their necks 
were protected by a mass of long, smooth, black hair, 
which fell down to their shoulders. 

I saw no women, and it is curious to relate that during 
the whole time I remained on the island, I very rarely 
saw one. Naked children and pigs swarmed all over the 
place. I kept my head pretty high during the walk 
across the square, and took off my large sun hat to fan 
myself and to show I really felt at home, although as a 
matter of fact my heart was somewhere near where my 
boots should have been, but their apology,in the shape of a 
very soiled pair of tennis shoes now hung round my neck. 

Unaccustomed as they were to seeing a stranger of any 
description, my presence in their very midst caused a 
good deal of fluttering in the various dove-cotes, and I 
must have appeared to them in the light of a scarecrow, if 
any of them had ever seen me. I was dressed in a pair of 
filthy white ducks turned up to the knee, a priceless Turn- 
bull and Asser shirt, sun-bleached of all its original col- 
our, a dirty red silk handkerchief round my neck, not so 
much for effect as for protection against the heat, and a 
huge grass hat to complete. I had by this time quite a 
thick beard and my arms, for colour, would have com- 
pared favourably with any of theirs. In one hand I car- 
ried a small leather despatch case, and had I only pos- 



284 KEEPING THE SEAS 

sessed an eye-glass and a swagger cane to complete the 
effect, I could have brought the house down in any music 
hall. 

When they saw I was making for the pub, the men all 
round got up, and one, a negro, who looked slightly su- 
perior to the rest, came forward. I asked him if he were 
Henrique, telling him who had favoured me with his 
name on the mainland. We shook hands cordially, and 
one by one the leading men came forward and followed 
suit. They patted me on the back in a friendly way, al- 
though an air of suppressed suspicion prevailed and much 
whispering was going on all the time. My host, Henrique, 
looked a thorough-faced rascal, but he had a merry laugh 
which soon made me feel a trifle less uncomfortable and 
when I told him where I had come from, and that my object 
was to look for a likely site to put up a lighthouse, he had 
sufficient intelligence to know I must be something super- 
ior to an ordinary fisherman, and addressed me then and 
there as "SenhorDoutor" (Mr. Doctor). This title stuck 
to me while I was on the island, all Brazilian professional 
men, engineers, lawyers or surgeons being styled doctors. 

Henrique went down to the beach for my two suit cases, 
the steamer labels on which soon caused such excitement 
as threatened to eclipse my own popularity. I arranged 
with him to have the use of one of the newer grass-covered 
huts, and he was evidently relieved at the opportunity for 
taking me away from his own hut and showing me my new 
quarters — if he had had a chained lion inside his own hut 
he could not have shown more concern at my attempts to 
enter it. He accompanied me with half the male popula- 
tion to a newly erected hut standing a bit off the beaten 
track, and removed the grass-covered hurdle which con- 
stituted the dor. My spirits sank even lower when we 
stepped inside, for the stench was something too terrible 



KEEPING THE SEAS 285 

and the whole place was filthy beyond words. As it was an 
unoccupied hut, Henrique had used it for storing dried 
prawns, which were piled up in large quantities at the far 
end. The few minutes I was inside almost made me faint, 
but at my request he promised to remove the stinking 
crustaceans, and set some dozen naked boys to do the job 
immediately. My two bags, a hammock and a deck chair, 
which I had brought with me, were put inside, and I no- 
ticed with uneasiness that there were four other ham- 
mocks slung to the centre pole from the four main roof 
supports and hanging a foot off the ground. He cheered 
me up by asking if I would like a bath, so taking a towel 
and sponge bag, I accompanied him through his own 
quarters to an outhouse built in the same style. To my 
amazement I noticed in passing through the front part of 
his hut, which was the grog shop, that he had shelves up 
all round on which were arranged many bottles of beer, 
brandy, Perrier, ginger-beer, and mixed sweets in bottles; 
also straw hats, various tins of preserved fruits and a 
quantity of red and green electric light bulbs. He hustled 
me through quickly, but to this day I am prepared to 
swear that what I saw was not fancy, as he tried to make 
out afterwards, for although I was only absent half an 
hour over my ablutions, when I returned to his shop 
there was not a vestige of any of these things to be seen, 
and in their place a quantity of fishing tackle, nets, empty 
earthenware jars and various odds and ends had been 
substituted. Whilst having my so-called bath, which con- 
sisted of a small lard-sized tin of blackish looking water, 
I had consoled myself with the prospect of unlimited 
beer, so that you can picture my dismay when, on return- 
ing to his shop and asking him for a bottle, he laughed 
at me and said, "Mr. Doctor ! Beer? We have no beer 
in these parts." I was quick enough to see at once what 



286 KEEPING THE SEAS 

had happened, but it was galling to think he had all that 
stuff and was not going to let me have any of it. I had 
heard on the mainland that the island had been used by 
the Germans on various occasions to re-victual the Karls- 
ruhe from the stores of the British ships she captured, 
and I found out later that besides the Karlsruhe , which 
appears to have been there several times, the Vandyke, a 
large i o,ooo-ton Lamport & Holt liner, had been in 
there, followed later by the colliers, Rio Negro and Pa- 
tagonia. The Fame, a British ship manned by a German 
prize crew, had also visited the island. The stores 
which I had seen in Henrique's hut probably came from 
the Vandyke, as the appearance of such a large ship gave 
them much to talk about, and I heard later that many 
"presents" had come out of her. Henrique was un- 
doubtedly suspicious that my visit was connected with 
his stores, and did the obviously best thing to do under 
the circumstances — hid everything away and swore that 
he had nothing. I really could have wept with rage, as 
I badly wanted something more substantial than the 
mango and dried prawn diet on which I had existed for 
over a fortnight. At the same time I could not help 
admiring the calm way in which he lied, although his 
acting was somewhat spoilt by a small boy occasionally 
creeping past us as we sat at the entrance to his hut, and 
returning to ask where the "doces" (sweets) were. A 
healthy smack with the open hand was Henrique's way 
of dealing with awkward questions, and our conversa- 
tion would continue as though there had been no inter- 
ruption. 

All the time he was with me, Henrique had a funny 
little naked black girl in his arms, who every now and 
again would set up an ear-piercing shriek. If this was 
continued for any length of time, he would deal with her 



KEEPING THE SEAS 287 

in the same fashion — turn the child over on her little black 
tummy and administer a resounding smack, which nearly 
always had the desired effect of making her shut up. 

All this time a meal was being prepared, and presently 
it made its appearance. I got up from the hard earth on 
which I had been sitting, expecting to be introduced to the 
rather portly black lady who was obviously Henrique's 
better half, but he merely told her to take the meal away 
again and bring a box to act as a table. She re-appeared 
later with an old whisky box, over which she spread my 
towel which I had already used for my bath. The crowd 
by this time had retired, to feed I presumed, so Henrique 
asked me to look after the brat whilst he went inside his 
hut, and deposited her on the sand beside me. The pro- 
longed absence of both parents caused her to redouble her 
previous efforts and she made such a row that I thought I 
would try my hand on the magic stop. I turned her over 
with my feet and gave her one, into which I put a bit 
intended for her father for his obstinacy in refusing to let 
me have the beer. But this time it had no effect whatever, 
and she yelled more lustily than ever. The mother at last 
arrived with the tins of food in each hand, but she didn't 
take the slightest notice of either of us, and the yelling did 
not cease, until Henrique appeared with a half-eaten 
mango, which the kid promptly started to suck, making 
an awful mess of its face and chest. 

Henrique stood on no ceremony, and after helping 
himself with his fingers to a fair-sized fish in one of the 
tins, he passed it over to me. I was a bit annoyed when he 
started pouring "farinha" (ground mandioco maize) in- 
to the gravy, before I had had my second whack at the 
fish, and giving it to the child in balls, so I passed that 
course and went for the chicken, which was quite tasty, 



288 KEEPING THE SEAS 

although a bit overdone, and it took me two or three dips 
before I could find a bone with anything on. 

As soon as the meal was put on the table, eight enor- 
mous pigs turned up and scrambled all around us for the 
bits we dropped — altogether it was not an enjoyable re- 
past, but I was so hungry I could have cheerfully gone 
through it again. More trouble ensued when Henrique 
removed the debris and left the child with me, as she put 
down her mango stone for a minute while she investi- 
gated a fish bone and a large pig walked off with it. 

It was now dark, and kerosene flares had been lit inside 
Henrique's hut. He appeared and asked me to come in, 
and as the crowd had gain returned and started their 
usual occupation of spitting, I was glad to avail myself 
of his invitation. His hut was about five yards by four, 
divided off at the far end by a sort of counter, over which 
he dispensed the national strong "cacasha," giving a 
small cup full in exchange for a handful of dried prawns, 
which constituted the local currency. He had quite a tidy 
pile by 9 p.m., when the after-dinner drinking appeared 
to stop, and consequently the atmosphere became more 
and more pronounced. Apparently every one cured his 
own prawns, but it was left to Henrique to take them over 
about once a month to the mainland for sale. He had 
quite "cornered" the prawn market in Sao Joao by reason 
of his business; as he merely exchanged strong drinks or 
sail cloth for their equivalent in prawns, this required no 
system of double entry ledger books, and left him free to 
smoke and spit in front of his shop and cuddle his off- 
spring, of which he had any number. He produced some 
excellent green cocoanuts for me, the milk of which 
makes a most refreshing drink, and I drank up any 
amount of these during my stay of 14 days on the island. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 289 

At last I began to get anxious about my sleeping 
arrangements, so suggested to Henrique that if he 
would give me a flare, I would paddle down to my hut. 
My hut ! — imagine my disgust an arriving with Henrique 
and finding the place, with three other men turned in, 
and shrieking for aid with its terrible attendant stench of 
dried prawns. I told him at once that I would not sleep 
there with three other men. I wanted a hut all to myself 
and a clean one; I would pay him and pay him well. He 
explained that at great personal inconvenience these men 
had come to sleep in my hut to show me their appreciation 
of my selecting their island for my stay, and that even he 
was going to do me the honour of sharing the other ham- 
mock! 

Protests were unavailing, and after helping me to sling 
my hammock, which hung about a foot from his, he 
turned in and watched with evident astonishment my 
change into pyjamas. The others were now fully awake 
and most personal remarks were passed about the white- 
ness of my skin. 

Before getting into my hammock, I pushed the cover- 
ing away from the door, to try and get a little air into the 
place, but there were loud protests at once, as I was in- 
formed that evil spirits abounded in the island and unless 
every place was hermetically closed down at night, they 
would come in and cast a spell on one ! 

Of the horrors of the night, it is difficult to write. No 
sooner had I lain down — not to sleep, for I had no inten- 
tion of attempting to do so with the four natives around 
me — than they started a regular systematic course of 
throat-clearing of the most disgusting character. Each 
appeared to be trying to outdo his neighbour, and the 
result baffles description. I found out afterwards that it 
was not done for my special benefit, but was a regular 

19 



290 KEEPING THE SEAS 

nightly performance, and they appeared to be able to do 
so even in their sleep, for the noise went on until 3 a.m., 
when my friends got up and went off prawn fishing. 
After this I slept until Henrique woke me, with a cup of 
black coffee in his hands." 

The above is fairly illustrative of Pullen's life for the 
next 14 days. He entered fully into the life of the island- 
ers, going on their fishing excursions and generally inter- 
esting himself in the natives and their ways. So well did 
he impress them that their suspicions were quickly al- 
layed, and he learnt from these red men all that he wished 
to know. They told him of the ships that had been 
anchored off there, and of their visits to them, and he 
found out that an English cruiser came here once and 
narrowly missed recapturing the British steamer Fame, 
then in charge of a German prize crew, who lay hidden in 
one of the creeks close by. 

It has already been stated that he lived for a fortnight 
with the islanders, but although Henrique's mistrust 
had been broken down, the hiding-place of the longed- 
for beer was never revealed. Henrique was a slimy 
brute to give him his full due. Pullen rendered him 
certain services in fitting him and his family out with 
clothing. He had brought along sundry articles suitable 
for presents ; included among these was a Burberry water- 
proof, which prize naturally fell to Henrique him- 
self. Pullen described how, when it rained, in Sao Joao 
settlement, the wily negro would stand arrayed in the 
Burberry in the middle of the settlement square, to be 
admired, envied and worshipped by his dusky customers. 
Can you picture him? If Messrs. Burberry want to 
establish a branch at Sao Joao, Pullen assures me that 
the Sao Joao-ites are prepared to barter plenty of smelly 



KEEPING THE SEAS 291 

prawns, and doubtless there are many, whose ideas of 
the equality of man will give the islanders a chance to 
put up their prawns for sale in the Haymarket. 

In order to get clear of the islands with the informa- 
tion required, Pullen bartered with Henrique for the hire 
of a boat. One was finally obtained from an adjacent 
islet. The small fishing craft, 16 feet in length, was 
anchored off the settlement and Pullen surveyed it. This 
was a more attractive craft than the one he had come over 
with. It was sheltered in part from the sun by means of 
a small well-deck. Henrique assured Pullen that with his 
assistance, the journey to Braganca could be made in a 
couple of days, and once there he knew he would find a 
railway and communications available. 

On his way to the beach Pullen's heart leapt with joy at 
the idea of leaving his unsavoury friends, the Henrique 
family, but picture his disappointment when he arrived 
alongside the boat to find the whole family on board; all 
the pleasure promised by the shelter of the well-deck 
quickly vanished when he climbed on board to find him- 
self once more forced to live cheek by jowl with these un- 
utterably dirty people. In the tiny cockle-shell were no 
less than seven children, Mrs. Henrique, her companion 
(another fat negress) , Henrique, an assistant negro, and 
the lieutenant himself. In their bargain for the Burberry 
coat no mention had been made of the Henrique family. 
Henrique had merely agreed to provide a boat with two 
men to work it, this including himself. Pullen was 
furious, but the Henrique family were not to be done 
out of their joy-ride, and after all, two days was not an 
interminable epoch. The journey actually took seven 
days, the unnecessary increase in time being occasioned 
by the sea-sickness which overcame the Henrique family; 



292 KEEPING THE SEAS 

and the fat Madame Henrique having more say than 
anyone in the boat, she prevailed upon her lawful spouse 
to make the journey to Braganca by means of the inland 
waterways, once the mainland was reached. Pullen 
angrily protested, but the angrier he got the more the 
family crowded round him, and literally overpowered 
him by their close-packed bodies; he eventually gave 
way, although he much wanted the boat to skirt along 
the coast line, in order that he might be given the 
opportunity to get further information. However, 
Henrique's boat was the only transport available, and 
he took it, glad enough to get clear. 

This journey was not without interest, for the fishing 
craft, once they had reached the mainland, had to be 
propelled through sluggish, winding streams, which in 
places were roofed over with vegetation so thick that the 
boat's mast often caught up in it and had to be cleared 
with a hatchet. 

The opportunity of a cruise like this occurs but once 
in a lifetime, and although Pullen's pleasure was marred 
by the company he kept, he had many chances of seeing 
things which deep-sea sailors never will. Telling me his 
story during the long, dark night watches on the Active's 
bridge, he pictured his extraordinary journey; his des- 
cription of the myriads of light heliotrope orchids with 
their scarlet centres, made one long to be an explorer 
once again, to go with him where he had been to to see 
what he had seen. It all seemed so extraordinary, this 
travelling and experience, and that we in this great war, 
all working in our water-tight compartments, our horizon 
limited, our ideas narrowed by the great and necessary 
secrecy, were denied access to one another's widely 
differing experiences unless a coincidence such as that 



KEEPING THE SEAS 293 

which threw Pullen and myself together, gave us the 
opportunity to exchange reminiscences. 

I am afraid I laughed without restraint when Pullen 
told me about his life during those awful seven days. 
To begin with, Madame Henrique had arrayed her chil- 
dren in their best when she marched them to their ship, 
a distance of no more than 50 yards, for the benefit of 
those who had come to bid her farewell. The little 
chocolate coloured children were in simple calico print 
dresses of varying hues and shades. They hated it, 
having run naked all their lives. Madame herself wore 
high-heeled shoes on which she clumsily pivoted her 
bulky mass as she started across the sands ; unfortun- 
ately, however, the strain was too great for her, and 
after the shoes were filled with the fine yellow shingle 
stuff, she was forced to end by carrying the light brown 
calf-skins in her hand. No sooner on board than they 
put away their party suits, and before the last good-byes 
were said, most of the party were naked. 

Pullen's description of the incidents during the voyage 
I cannot give in full, but many things would appeal to 
those who have never made extended boat journeys, 
and even to some who have. The cooking and feeding 
were so disgusting that Pullen kept to a diet of mangoes, 
of which, fortunately, there was ample supply. It 
should be remembered that the cooking was done in 
tins, which served a variety of purpose; they were never 
properly cleaned, they smelt of bad fish, and when the 
meals were served in them, each dirty little negro child 
grabbed something from the pot. When Pullen's turn 
came to grab his share he usually emptied what he got 
quietly over the side. He could hardly offend these 
people, for they really did mean well, and however great 



294 KEEPING THE SEAS 

his distaste for the Henrique family, they lacked not 
generosity. And, as Pullen himself confessed, Henrique's 
smile made up for many of his shortcomings. They could 
after all, do no more than offer him the best they had 
to give, invariably dried prawns or black beans. 

Their daily life consisted of paddling the boat through 
the labyrinth of rivulets at a rate of some three miles 
an hour; they worked the boat according to the tides, 
both by night and day. As may be imagined, in their 
congested floating home quarrels were of daily occur- 
rence, one might almost say hourly. Henrique and his 
wife being the closest relations, led easily in this. Madame 
was a pessimist. Up till now her life had been a fairly 
happy one, because she had not had the opportunity of 
doing the grand tour; her domestic duties had kept her 
employed, and before she honoured Pullen with her 
presence on their yachting trip, she had never had leisure 
enough to cause any serious trouble. But here, afloat, 
with nothing to do, these quarrels were inevitable. Pullen 
himself was exempt; the party certainly never lost their 
respect for him, and even the children, when they yelled, 
were silenced by a look from him. 

At night comparative peace reigned, the mother, com- 
panion and children retired to the shelter of the well- 
deck, exhausted by the labours and quarrels of the day. 
Pullen stretched out on the sail, right aft, Henrique lay 
on the side, and the native fisherman, whose boat it 
really was, crouched in the bows. 

It was during the moonless period, and the nights were 
dark and generally still. The stillness was occasionally 
broken by the beautiful bird-calls, and towards the 
approach of dawn the chattering of monkeys made itself 



KEEPING THE SEAS 295 

heard. But these animal sounds were all music that 
merely rocked the human cargo to sleep. 

On the eighth morning out, Pullen arrived at Brag- 
anca where he bade farewell to the family of Henrique. 
All the discomforts of this odious journey were quickly 
forgotten, the little vices, nasty habits and attendant 
beastliness of this hardly picturesque family have faded 
by now from Pullen's memory, and if you meet him 
lunching at the Carlton and mention the name Henrique, 
he will say, "Here's luck to the old boy with his fat negro 
wife. He had a white man's heart." 

I do not propose to prolong the adventures of Lieut. 
Pullen, although many things that he has told me, I 
have not here set down ; but what has been told in this 
chapter sufficiently illustrates an altogether unheard of 
and unadvertised sea patrol. It cannot fail to interest 
the reader of this simple sailor volume. We who go 
down to the sea in different styles of craft are but simple 
sailor folk, out to win, to do our best, and entirely devoid 
of rhetoric, but we all have one thing in common, and 
that is the national heritage of sea instinct that has made 
our little island nation what it is. Pullen, of whom 
I have written, had the heart of a sailor, the mind of a 
king and the physique of a bank clerk. He gave the 
combination of these three things to the service of the 
Allies, and when that dirty little Brazilian sailing boat 
ejected him at Braganca, as the whale ejected Jonah, 
Pullen, with all his great patriotic heart, was physically 
broken down. He made his way to the railway station 
and after hours, mostly spent in sleep, he arrived at 
Paga. Thence he made his way to the British Consulate 
and told them what he knew. There are many things 
that Pullen observed that have not been indicated in this 
little volume. 



296 KEEPING THE SEAS 

On arriving at the Consulate, the Brazilian porter 
rejected him as one unfit to gain admittance, but after 
some badinage in English and Portuguese Pullen ob- 
tained an audience with the British Consul himself. By 
this time Pullen was almost odious to look upon. His 
matted locks fell greasily over his ears, his beard un- 
trimmed gave him the appearance of the wild man from 
Borneo, and his clothing reeked. The consul treated 
Pullen with curiosity, mixed with a certain amount of 
suspicion. He obviously mistook him for a distressed 
seaman of a very low calibre. After a short conversation, 
however, his suspicions were dispelled, and when Pullen, 
who is nothing if not a humourist, had had a little sport 
at the Consul's expense, he identified himself as one 
C. H. Pullen, whose whereabouts was unknown. The 
consul informed him that many and anxious enquiries 
had come through from the British Legation at Rio; and 
after Pullen had made known some of his experience 
to Mr. Michel, the British Consul in question, that 
gentleman apologised for not being able to invite him 
to dinner, as he was expecting ladies that night. Mr. 
Michell was obviously distressed at not being able to 
extend his hospitality to Pullen on account of his dread- 
ful appearance, but Pullen laughingly re-assured him, 
and suggested that he should make his appearance later 
on, when he had bathed, shaved and changed. A very 
different young gentleman confronted the consul later, 
and the consul recalls with some amusement that he did 
not know his guest when Pullen arrived at 7 p.m. 

Those of us who have done any service as explorers, 
tramps, or guests of an Henrique family, can well appre- 
ciate the extraordinary sensation of putting on a stiff 
collar once again — the agony of constantly twisting 



KEEPING THE SEAS 297 

one's neck, putting one's finger down, smoothing, 
straightening and squirming. All these things are good 
to experience. 

I regret to say that the extraordinary adventures of 
Pullen left him in very bad health, and the return to 
civilisation and civilised food, which came about so 
suddenly, upset him so much that he collapsed. He was 
ill for many days, but good simple food and rest soon 
pulled him through and he arrived in England two 
months later, none the worse for his experiences. 

Reverting now to the beginning of this chapter — I 
found him, I stole him and I took him to Lisbon. Since 
it was Armistice time and our widely differing sea 
patrols were ended, Pullen and I cruised round in the 
beautiful Portuguese city, and having seen as much as 
we could, we moved afield and out into the lovely 
country highways. I learnt from him the details of his 
naval service that he had from modesty omitted whilst 
on board the Active, perhaps the bare-footed Joses, 
ambling alongside their carroces on the hard white 
Portuguese roads, awakened memories of the Brazilian 
coasts patrols and made Pullen tell me his story. 

I hesitated to include this chapter because, realising as 
every Allied subject must what tremendous assistance has 
been given to the Allied cause by the great Brazilian Re- 
public, I fear that Englishmen may think Pullen's story 
a reflection on Brazil. This of course is far from my 
intention; Pullen, having received great hospitality at 
Brazilian hands, has learnt to know Brazil and to appre- 
ciate affectionately the friendship of this great country. 

Pullen's adventures more properly lay with the negro 
element who, although Brazilian subjects, in no way rep- 
resent the true Brazilian type to whom we owe so much. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

A Portuguese Sea Patrol 

The foregoing chapter may well be supplemented by an 
account of what a young Portuguese midshipman went 
through towards the end of the war. I learnt about 
this when the Active visited Lisbon, and the account was 
given to me by Admiral Da Costa Ferreira, who was 
at the time First Sea Lord in the Portuguese Admiralty. 
On the 1 2th October, 191 8, the trawler mine-sweeper, 
Augusto de Casticho, commanded by Lieut. Carvetho 
Aranjo, left Funchal for Ponta Delgada as escort to the 
passenger steamer, S. Miguel. At daybreak, two days 
later, an enemy submarine was sighted, and its identity 
was declared by its opening fire on the passenger ship. 
On board the mine-sweeper, the crew immediately went 
to action stations, while the submarine steaming 
rapidly on the surface, took up its position between the 
steamer and the mine-sweeper and commenced firing 
simultaneously against these two small vessels. It was 
very quickly recognized that the submarine was superior 
both in guns and speed to the mine-sweeper. Neverthe- 
less, Lieut. Carvetho Aranjo at once made for the sub- 
marine at full speed, and the submarine retired out of 
range, firing as she went and wasting a quantity of 
ammunition, The S. Miguel turned and made away at 
full speed, and the little Portuguese trawler kept between 

298 



KEEPING THE SEAS 299 

her and the submarine, putting up a noble fight with her 
two small guns. She was, however, hopelessly out- 
matched. After half-an-hour's engagement, an enemy 
shell struck the Augusto de Casticho, morfally wounding 
a cadet named Eloy de Freitas and wounding Midship- 
man Arenando Ferraz, the second in command, besides 
a gunner and some seamen. However, the Augusto de 
Casticho had got the submarine into the range of her own 
guns and the shells commencing to fall round the U 
boat, she steamed once more away. In the Portuguese 
trawler, after forty minutes' of fighting, the ammunition 
was practically all expended and the deck was crowded 
with wounded and dying. However, the S. Miguel had 
by this time made good her escape and this being so, the 
Augusto de Casticho was turned away, since it was quite 
impossible for her to gain any success against the 
enemy. The stern gun of the mine-sweeper, under Mid- 
shipman Ferraz, continued firing, but the submarine 
easily kept out of range and continued shooting from a 
distant of 3,000 metres. It was now reported to the 
mine-sweeper's commander that the ammunition had 
almost run out. He answered curtly, "We can die 
fighting as Portuguese," then turning with his bow to 
the enemy, the commander took personal charge of the 
firing, at the same time manoeuvring his vessel back to 
the attack. The submarine once again retired, but the 
ammunition of the little Portuguese was now almost 
expended, although the last few rounds were carefully 
husbanded. After being in action two hours, Lieut. 
Carvetho Aranjo exclaimed with supreme satisfaction 
"The steamer is safe, we have done some good." This 
was indeed the case, for the S. Miguel was over 20 miles 
away. The mine-sweeper's bow gun was the lcrger of 



3 oo KEEPING THE SEAS 

her two pieces, and when no ammunition remained for it, 
the ship was turned to bring her stern gun to bear. The 
second officer, Midshipman Ferraz, who had received 
fresh wounds in the back and arm, managed the gun 
himself, firing about 20 shots, and then when every 
round had been exhausted, the lifeboat was lowered, 
for the Angusto de Casticho was sinking. To save 
further loss of life, the commander hoisted a white flag 
under the national colours. The second boat was then 
lowered but, being full of holes, it sank. There was still 
a small boat in the davits, which was not ready for 
launching and there were not sufficient men to clear it. 
The officers and a wounded seamen set to work to clear 
it away. 

The enemy continued firing in spite of the white flag, 
which was plainly visible. Two 4.1-inch shells burst on 
board, injuring the boat and wounding the two officers, 
and another shell fell close to the lifeboat which, acting 
under the orders of Lieut Aranjo, had pulled some dis- 
tance away. A shell fragment mortally wounded 
Aranjo in the chest and with one foot shattered the 
gallant Portuguese officer fell with his head against the 
winch. Midshipman Ferraz, although badly wounded, 
went to the assistance of his commander, only to find 
that he was dead. The midshipman, who was scarcely 
twenty, collected the few wounded seamen together and 
the little party threw themselves into the sea, there 
being no other course open to them since the trawler was 
on fire and settling down. Before plunging into the 
sea Midshipman Ferraz went to the captain's cabin to 
fetch the confidential books and destroy them, and then 
went overboard, swimming with one arm and one leg, 
to a life buoy, which had previously been thrown over. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 301 

The Augusto de Casticho's life boat was too crowded to 
embark the poor fellows swimming in the water, in fact 
it was almost sinking, and Ferraz bravely held on to the 
buoy for an hour and a half rather than jeopardise the 
chances of safety for those in the boat. The submarine 
now approaching, ordered the lifeboat alongside. When 
the boat had approached the submarine, orders were 
given to the Portuguese to proceed and they were 
prevented from helping the men swimming in the 
water. 

The submarine then came close to the life buoy, to 
which several men were now clinging and threw a rope 
to them. The Portuguese were then hauled on to the 
deck of the submarine, when the officers and crew 
received them at the point of their revolvers and a 
cinematograph operator took a film of the scene. One 
of the submarine officers opened a conversation in 
French with Midshipman Ferraz, asking him if the com- 
mander of the Augusto de Casticho were dead. Receiv- 
ing an affirmative reply, he expressed his regret somewhat 
curtly and complimented the! survivors on the way in 
which they had fought their ship. He said that his 
commander never expected the Portuguese to defend 
themselves with so much courage, realising what the 
odds were. 

Ferraz requested that his seamen should have their 
wounds dressed, and the officer, after calling the surgeon, 
turned to him and said, "Why did you join the 
British?" 

The mine-sweeper remained afloat for some time with 
her decks awash, and after the Portuguese had been 
attended to and an injection of morphia given to Ferraz, 
he was allowed to send four seamen on board the 



3 o2 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Augnsto de Casticho in the submarine dinghy. They 
managed to launch the mine-sweeper's remaining boat 
and stopped up the holes in it with a coat. Fortunately, 
they had a barrel with 14 litres of water and a box of 
biscuits in this boat. A Portuguese seaman wished to 
fetch a compass, but a German who had boarded the 
mine-sweeper with the Portuguese sailors prevented him, 
kicking him in the chest. The boat was what we should 
call a dinghy, and had two oars and no sails, but Ferraz 
managed to secure a couple of oars in addition, while 
the attention of the German was for the moment dis- 
tracted. 

The midshipman asked the submarine commander to 
tow him closer to the land. This request was coldly 
refused with the stereotyped phrase, "C'est la Guerre"; 
and the Germans cast the boat off. 

There were twelve survivors in this small boat when 
they set out on their journey to the nearest land. The 
Germans blew up the mine-sweeper shortly after, and 
three hours later the U boat again closed them, passing 
within a hundred yards of the Portuguese and gloating 
over them. 

For six days and six nights the survivors of the 
Aligns to de Casticho pulled towards the land, and their 
sufferings were indescribable. Thanks to the courage 
of the midshipman, who continually cheered them up, 
the Portuguese bravely persisted in their efforts to save 
themselves, but it was a desolate and dismal business, 
with nothing but sky and sea for the men to look at. 
They searched the horizon continually for smoke or 
some sign of a passing ship, unfortunately without 
success. 

On the second day of this miserable voyage they 



KEEPING THE SEAS 303 

experienced a rough sea, which re-opened the breach 
in the boat, and it was only with the greatest difficulty 
that they managed to stop it afresh. They suffered 
dreadfully from hunger and thirst, but it was impossible 
to masticate the biscuit, which was soaked in sea water 
soon after the submarine left them. 

On the 19th October, at about 1 1 in the forenoon one 
of the seamen, who was rowing, standing up after the 
Portuguese fashion, suddenly cried out, "Land." It 
appeared to be a great distance off, but it was land all 
the same, and twenty-four hours later the little boat 
reached it. 

Men who have been adrift at sea will understand the 
joy of survivors when they saw the shore; they 
rowed frantically, but were too weak to get up much 
speed. 

However, about noon on the 20th, they arrived at 
Ponta Os Arnel, where they were kindly received and 
their wounds dressed. The midshipman was awarded 
the Portuguese Order of the Tower and Sword for his 
services and he was promoted to the rank of 
Lieutenant. 

While the Active was in Lisbon we wished to show 
some appreciation of this gallant Portuguese officer and 
his brave companions, who certainly had added a proud 
page to Portuguese naval history. I was in rather a 
unique position in this respect, for Portugal is in the front 
rank as a country of geographical discovery, and being a 
bit of an explorer myself, I was able to organize a lecture 
on "Captain Scott's Last Expedition," which I gave in 
the beautiful building of the Geographical Society at 
Lisbon. The President of the Society, himself a sailor, 
in his opening address asked those present at the lecture 



3 o 4 KEEPING THE SEAS 

to subscribe to the fund which had been opened for the 
Augusto de Casticho dependants. A very considerable 
sum was forthcoming, and this was handed over to the 
Portuguese Admiralty in the name of H.M.S. Active. 
Viva Portugal! 



CHAPTER XIX 

Belgium, 1919 

Those who have fought on the side of the Allies on the 
Western Front, cannot possibly fail to appreciate the 
difference between the Belgium of late 19 14 and the Bel- 
gium of today. 

Before the war, visitors to this land were always struck 
by the energy of the people. The prevailing feature was 
cleanliness in the towns, industry throughout the entire 
country, and a feeling of peaceful contentment in the 
rural districts. 

In the summer, especially, Belgium is beautiful, al- 
though devoid, in the Flanders part, of the hills to which 
we in Great Britain are accustomed. There is a green 
loveliness and peacefulness which attracts one strongly 
to Flanders. Now that the war is over and the people 
have come back, many will have for some time a feeling 
of unrest, for the great pleasure of re-visiting their homes 
has been sadly marred by the trademark of the German 
race. The huge sand dunes which build a rampart right 
along the Belgian coast have been entirely disfigured 
by innumerable German batteries. They are to be 
found everywhere so closely placed that the guns are 
only separated by a matter of a hundred yards or so. 
The whole coast defence has been reinforced by batteries 
of 15-inch and other heavy guns immediately in the 
rear of the sand dunes themselves. 
20 305 



3 o6 KEEPING THE SEAS 

The Germans took advantage of the light electric 
railway behind the dunes to feed their batteries and to 
complete the very excellent inter-battery communica- 
tion. The existence of this railway was indeed a very 
fortunate cricumstance for the Boches entrenched in 
Flanders. 1 do not know what the expert opinion on the 
subject of coast bombardments is, but what the Germans 
thought is very evident. One only has to walk a few 
miles along the dunes at any part to appreciate how 
much our enemy feared and respected the British Navy. 

In 1914-15 and perhaps 1916 there was a good deal of 
real patriotism obtaining in the German Marine Korps 
certainly. As the war progressed there are signs that 
the patriotism of the Marine Korps waned, for in odd 
spots one finds caricatures of the Kaiser and little Willy 
obviously made by the Germans themselves; for it is 
hardly to be expected that Belgians would take the 
trouble to march miles along the dunes with pots of 
paint and German grammars and dictionaries in order 
to camouflage and make propaganda that practically 
nobody would ever come across. These things bear 
singns of having been executed in the last two years 
of the war. 

However, one is gladdened now-a-days on passing by 
these self-same dunes to notice how industriously Belgian 
workmen are pulling down these memorials to the 
Germany of the past. They are busily engaged in re- 
moving all traces of these disfiguring things, though 
probably a certain number will be left as objects of 
attraction and interest. If visitors find them too 
hideous for their holiday enjoyment, they can always 
turn their backs on them and gaze over the green fields 
of Belgium towards the beautiful spire of Bruges Cathe- 



KEEPING THE SEAS 307 

dral, which stands out as a land-mark for the whole coast 
from Ostend to Knocke. 

Flanders has been magnificently described by the 
Belgian poet, Verhaeren. This man, whose pen is so 
poetically descriptive, was unfortunately run over and 
killed by a locomotive at Rouen during the war. In 
order to pay him a last respect, the Belgians buried him 
with military honours at Adinkerke, one of those typical 
Flanders villages which he so splendidly portrays. The 
exquisite green of the Flanders plains baffles description 
by an ordinary sailor, but nevertheless, those who come 
to Belgium will see it for themselves, and by reading 
Verhaeren's poems, without even visiting Belgium, they 
can conjure up in their imaginations the country's beauty 
as something superb. 

The Germans made themselves pretty comfortable on 
the Belgian coast, and certainly their defensive engineer- 
ing works are unparalleled. The lock gates at Zeebrugge 
are well protected; when the caissons are opened they 
run back under a concrete shelter with a covering of 
reinforced concrete five feet thick to protect them from 
air-raids and bombardments. 

To minister to the comfort of the German Marine 
Korps in Flanders, they constructed amongst the dunes 
underground villas with tiled walls and floors, electric 
lighting, central heating and every modern household 
convenience. In one of them was a beautiful fountain, 
which played coolly during the summer months. The 
Huns rather spoiled the beauty of this aquatic ornament 
by mounting washed-up British mines on pedestals 
alongside of it. These they disfigured with the usual 
"Got mitt Uns" type of inscription. The villas were 
protected by the customary five feet of reinforced con- 



308 KEEPING THE SEAS 

crete, and they were furnished luxuriously with stolen 
furniture accumulated in the neighbourhood, special 
attention naturally being given to the contents of the 
better class houses, which were denuded of pictures, 
curtains, carpets — and, in short, of everything that was 
costly and beautiful. 

These underground officers' quarters were wrecked by 
the Germans themselves when they departed from the 
coast, and the furniture which could not be carried off 
was hacked and hewed to pieces. 

The telephone installation of the coast defence re- 
ceived a tremendous amount of attention. The Germans 
were perfectly extraordinary in the use they made of the 
telephone, one finds evidence of this in all the occupied 
parts of Belgium. 

Although nobody would wish to say a good thing for 
the armies of occupation, one is bound to admit that same 
parts of Belgium suffered but trifling inconveniences 
compared to others which were literally razed to the 
ground, as Termonde was. But from Nieuport to 
Ypres, all along the banks of the Yser, and as far as the 
French border one literally cannot see a house standing, 
On the other hand take Ostend; this town, although 
denuded of such things as iron balconies, brass door- 
knobs and most other metal objects, has not suffered to 
any large extent, except from looting. Material damage 
in Ostend has been slight, but the looting and requisition- 
ing have been so systematically carried out that few 
people have any household gods in their possession. 
As an example, from one hotel fifty silver-plated coffee 
filters were taken off by German officers; and the late 
owner, whom I know, saw them being used by the offi- 
cers at their own mess in the German Kommandantur 



KEEPING THE SEAS 309 

and other places and in the German casinos. The Palace 
Hotel, the largest in Ostend and originally a magnificent 
building, contained the well-known winter garden which 
many English people had visited prior to the war. This 
was commandeered by the Huns; the winter garden was 
used as a stable, and a huge stationary engine was 
installed, boilers put in, and so forth, until the place 
was quite beyond recognition. Needless to say it was 
stripped of every article of furniture, including all the 
baths, wash-hand basins, etc., which were carried off 
to the coast defence dug-outs and gun battery positions, 
the overflow going to Germany. The Ostendais state 
that Prince Adalbert was in special charge of the "sal- 
vage" corps, and presumably was responsible for this 
wholesale spoliation. 

At the north-east end of the Belgian coast very little 
damage has been done, and a certain amount of con- 
structive work has been carried out, for example, the old 
Spanish fortifications near the Dutch border have been 
built up with a view to arresting any attack which might 
have been attempted through Dutch territory. 

Bruges, which, as everyone knows is one of the most 
beautiful old-world cities, has been very carefully 
handled by the Boche, although he has left dirty marks 
enough. Probably the reason that Bruges got off lightly 
was on account of its being the headquarters of the 
marine korps and naturally Von Schroeder and his 
kamarades kept it as snug as possible for their own 
benefit. Admiral von Schroeder was the Governor of 
Flanders and the Naval Commander-in-Chief. His 
daughter accompanied him to Bruges, and it is safe to 
say that she was the most hated woman in the town. 
Fraulein von Schroeder disguised herself as a lady under 



310 KEEPING THE SEAS 

the red cross uniform, but in reality she was the prime 
mover in the officers' casinos, in which she was frequently 
to be seen with a big flaxen-haired German woman, 
according to the statements of many of those who were 
forced to remain in Bruges throughout the war. The 
mere mention of Fraulein von Schroeder's name causes 
people to spit and make hideous faces. 

Von Schroeder had for his headquarters the Palais du 
Gouvernement in the Grand Place. The Admiral himself 
slept in the next room to his office, and the beautiful 
rooms of the Palais were sectioned off into offices and 
orderly rooms. 

I found written by a Belgian girl on the photograph 
of von Schroeder, the following lines: — 

" In einem Bruggen Unterstand 

Verteidigte 
Herr Admiral Schroeder 

Sein Kultiviertes Vaterland." 

which being interpreted means: — 

" In a shelter in Bruges, Admiral von Schroeder defended his 
Kultured Fatherland-" 

Much of the beautiful interior of the Palais du 
Gouvernement has been spoilt by the Germans, but its 
exterior hardly suffered; and I am glad to say that the 
town hall and belfry, which date from 1619, are left in- 
tact. The beautiful leather chair seats, with arms of 
the ancient city, have been rudely cut away and stolen, 
and the masonry of the interior has been most incon- 
siderately knocked about to make way for telephone 
cables and electric circuits, in an absolutely careless 
fashion. 

Bruges is known as the old Venice of the Continent, 



KEEPING THE SEAS 311 

being entirely surrounded by water, with many inter- 
secting canals. To be best appreciated the town should 
be seen on a hazy autumn day, when it has a mysterious 
charm which has been fully described by Rodenbach in 
his famous "Bruges, la Morte." 

Bruges docks, which are connected with Zeebrugge by 
a magnificent canal, lent themselves pre-eminently for 
the docking of submarines and for resting the crews after 
the very strenuous sea work which they were called upon 
to perform while the Germans pursued their policy of 
ruthless submarine warfare. And here the German naval 
headquarters staff showed their cleverness, for the sleepy, 
beautiful old city breathes repose and tranquillity. 
Contrast this glorious resting-place with Dover Har- 
bour! After seeing where the Germans had their stand- 
offs, one thinks of some of the dreadful nights we spent 
in Dover. It amounts to this, that while we had a most 
anxious time, being exposed to the winter gales in our 
Dover base, the Germans, when they came into harbour, 
were as snug and safe as we should have been if we had 
taken our ships bodily and placed them in Tunbridge 
Wells. 

Here at Bruges Docks we found the famous submarine 
shelters, which are built like an ancient Roman temple 
of columnar structure, covered in this case with an eight- 
foot reinforced concrete roof, which should be absolutely 
bomb-proof. The submarine shelter is divided into eight 
deep bays, capable of taking several submarines in each. 
This building is constructed on piles and the depth of 
water in the shelter is not under 30 feet. It was still 
being enlarged when it fell into the hands of the Belgians. 
The building is fitted with living quarters for the crews 
of the submarines. 



3 i2 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Before evacuating Bruges Docks, the enemy sunk six 
floating docks, in one of which was a submarine and in 
another a large modern destroyer. The enemy used so 
much explosive in destroying the submarine that they 
blew half of it out of and over the dock, when it bedded 
itself in the bank. A score of ships have been sunk by 
the Germans in the docks and the Zeebrugge-Bruges 
canal. The port clearance and salvage which is going 
on at the time of the Peace deliberations, will probably 
take longer than the signing of the Peace Treaty it- 
self. 

I am purposely refraining from describing Zeebrugge 
and the bottling up of this port and Ostend. I regret 
that I took no part in these heroic operations, but they 
have been well described elsewhere and a special book 
on the subject has been written and published by Pro- 
fessor Sandford Terry. 

In spite of the unsettled feelings of those Belgians 
who have come back to wrecked and ruined homes, the 
country folk who were here during the German occupa- 
tion, have not had their land despoiled, for happily 
nature is more generous and much stronger than the 
Hun. Everything this summer is green and fertile 
once more, field after field of bowing wheat can be 
seen from the Belgian highways, vegetation is luxurious, 
and as an agricultural country, Belgium will quickly be 
re-developed into its excellent pre-war state by the 
individual energies of the farmers and peasants. 

This same vegetation is quickly hiding all traces of the 
awful enemy domination which quelled the captured 
Belgians, although it never conquered their souls or 
their love for their beautiful country, which is smiling 
again this summer of 19 19. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 313 

This spring I had the opportunity of visiting Balger- 
hoeke, where the Germans made their last stand prior 
to the signing of the Armistice. The poor little town 
has been fearfully knocked about, the canal bridge has 
been blown up and everything done by the enemy to 
spoil progress and to show, what one can only describe 
as, brutal spite. Balgerhoeke is a tiny little place about 
10 miles north-west of Ghent. Damage due to the shell- 
ing by the Allies has left its mark and the place requires 
a good deal of rebuilding; but the inhabitants complain 
that unnecessary and wilful damage was done by the 
Germans, although they knew that they were about to 
take the preliminary step towards peace. 

Belgian workmen have done wonders towards the 
reconstruction of the railway systems from Ostend to 
Brussels and Antwerp, which had been frightfully 
devastated by the retiring enemy. The line had to be 
entirely relaid, practically every bridge has had to be 
rebuilt, and at Ghent the railway station was so utterly 
ruined by explosive charges that in a distance of some- 
thing over a mile twenty-five bridges were destroyed. 
The energy of the workpeople has been colossal and great 
credit is due to the Belgian railway engineers for their 
organisation and reconstructive planning. Just after 
the Armistice was signed, it took one 48 hours to travel 
by rail from Ostend to Brussels ; on "Vindictive" Day the 
journey was done in just over three hours. By the 
15th June it is fairly expected that the normal railway 
and steamboat services will be in force. It is good 
to see the Belgian labourers working. They realise that 
the future of Belgium depends on their efforts, and they 
go on from day to day, working full time, and achieving 
wonders. 



3H KEEPING THE SEAS 

Ghent is a place that has been interesting to visit 
this spring. Normally the railway ran along an embank- 
ment some thiry feet above the level of the town. Owing 
to the destruction of the bridges, the railway has had to 
be diverted to run through one of the principal streets 
and the square. This of course interferes with the 
Ghent tramway system, but that has had to give way to 
the more important transport. 

One of the saddest features in Belgium's present day 
commercial state is the gutting of the factories, which 
has been systematically carried out by the Germans in 
order to paralyse the trade and production of the country 
for years to come. At Charleroi over thirty factories 
have been denuded of the machinery which could 
be carried off, and those portions which were too 
difficult to remove have been deliberately broken 

U P' 

Although the visitor to Belgium at the present time 

when all nature is smiling and beautiful, would see very 

little of these things, the cruel fact remains that Belgium 

commercially is crippled and will be for some time. 

Visitors, unfortunately, do not visit factories; they are 

not interested in them, and there is a danger of some 

people, full of enthusiasm, running through the principal 

Belgian cities, being well-treated and well-fed, and then 

going away feeling that conditions are not so bad after 

all. I hope this view will not be taken by those who 

are going to put their money on at the casinos and 

generally to enjoy themselves in this heroic little land. 

The natural bravery of the Belgians asserts itself and 

makes him hide his sorrows and only show a bright face 

to the visitor, whom he cheerfully greets as one of his 

trusted allies of the recent dreadful war. 



KEEPING THE SEAS 315 

To read the neutral newspapers three months after 
the Armistice was signed, one would imagine that the 
Allies were grouped around the bars of an enormous 
cage, gloating over the discomforts of the German, starv- 
ing his women and children, freezing him to death and 
doing everything possible to encourage Bolshevism and 
anarchy. This conception has undoubtedly been pro- 
duced by the same lying mob of propaganda agents who 
were responsible for the circulation of such news as 
appeared in the Continental Times, which was supposed 
to be written by Americans in Germany, when it was 
written entirely by Boche agents. 

Not sufficient publicity has been given to the Belgian 
viewpoint of what happened during the Armistice. 
What have the Germans to say to the following? — 

The terms of the Armistice distinctly stated that the 
Allied Armies should remain in the positions occupied 
by them on the 11th November, for one week. The 
Germans in Belgium took advantage of those few days 
of grace to blow up ammunition dumps, which killed 
many Belgian non-combatants and caused terrific havoc 
all over the country. In one particular spot, at Luttre, 
west of Charleroi, they blew up about 20 trains full of 
ammunition, which wrecked the district and violated the 
whole intention of the Armistice terms. 

This is my final chapter, and I fear I have expanded 
somewhat, or shall I say paused by the wayside. The 
purpose of my book is to give a few peeps behind the 
scenes and to reveal the glad side of the sea services 
which I am so proud to be associated with, and at the 
same time to do what I can to illustrate the heroism of 
the Belgians. I was deeply touched on "Vindictive" Day 
when I witnessed with others of our naval service the 



3 i6 KEEPING THE SEAS 

tender tribute paid to the memories of those who lost 
their lives, when the Vindictive was so bravely 
manoeuvred into the jaws of the dragon. It would have 
done all Englishmen good to have taken part in the 
"Vindictive" Day celebrations. The clean, neat school 
children, who deposited beautiful floral wreaths on the 
graves of Commander Godsal and his dead companions, 
will never forget the ceremony, nor can they forget the 
simple yet telling words of the Burgomaster. None of 
us can forget the solemn service in the Cathedral of 
Saint Peter and Saint Paul, when the priests, clad in 
their Brussels lace surplices, surmounted with robes of 
gold, paid homage to the fallen and blessed the memory 
of their name. Although we Englishmen were for the 
most part of a different religious faith, we were given 
the places of honour in the cathedral, and as such guests 
of honour we felt proud that we were British sailors, 
standing in the reflected glory of our fallen comrades. 
The beautiful music of the cathedral went straight 
to our hearts, and our Belgian brothers in arms conveyed 
through that medium their sympathetic thoughts and 
sentiments. 

This book about sailors and their friends here in 
Belgium would not be complete without a respectful 
reference to one other gallant sailor, whose life was 
taken from him by the Germans when he was powerless 
and a prisoner. I am glad that I took the opportunity 
to visit Captain Fryatt's grave near Bruges. At the 
time of my visit I was shown to the graveside by friendly 
Belgians, and as I looked upon the simple black cross that 
marked the resting-place of this English seaman, I could 
not help feeling sorry that a movement was afoot to 
transfer Captain Fryatt's remains from this peacefully 



KEEPING THE SEAS 317 

slumbering garden cemetery in the midst of golden- 
hearted Belgium. 

I took a little party of officers and ratings to visit the 
sailor's grave and afterwards we drove some distance 
through the countryside. The summer weather was 
exquisite, and what gladdened me most of all was to see 
the re-appearance of cattle. As every Belgian knows, 
the Germans drove away all the live stock from the 
country when they retreated, but animals have now 
been replaced, and they are growing fat on the land. 
The tall ash trees, with their perfect foliage, contrasted 
hapilly with the gas-killed trees of the old Western 
Front. Waving clover, brilliant lucerne, and every shade 
and hue of green bring peace to the eyes of the Belgian 
peasant; the spring flowers tempt the laughing children; 
and great loaded wagons, slowly moving along the 
straight white, tree-fringed roadways, make one's heart 
rejoice, for they bring with them the spirit of peace and 
show one that the country is healing of its wounds. 

The scent of some pine trees which industrious Belgian 
workmen were cutting down and fashioning into pit 
props, attracted my party off the highway and led me 
into conversation with a very intelligent woodman, who 
told me of his war services and something of the removal 
of ploughs and agricultural "implements by the enemy. 
But as he sweated at his hewing and chopping there was 
a gleam of triumph in his eye. We talked a lot of the 
Germans and I noticed a little Green and red ribbon 
that he wore; it was the Belgian Croix de Guerre. He 
saw me looking at it and when I shook hands and 
bade him good-bye, the gleam of triumph reappeared. 
"We beat them all right," he said. I simply loved that 
WE. 



318 KEEPING THE SEAS 

Making my way back to headquarters by beautiful 
twilight and starlight, I thought of Belgium as of a very 
beautiful girl, who had won through some serious illness 
— one who should be nourished and nursed and was after 
all entitled to some petting. 



THE END 



INDEX 



"A" boats, German, 105 

Abelard, 212 

Active, 117, 197, 219, 244; based at 
Gibraltar, 246; friendship of 
officers, 246; 254; restrictions 
and punctuality, 252; Sunday in 
Gibraltar, 260; entertainment on, 
261; at Madeira, 269; return to 
England 271; visit to Lisbon, 
298; appreciation of gallant Por- 
tuguese officer, 303 

Adalbert, Prince, in charge of sal- 
vage, 309 

Adams, Lieut. J. B., 23 ; message, 
24 

Adinkerke, 168 

Admiralty, in praise of 15 

Adventure, 157, 197, 246, 254 

Aventurier, 103 

Aeroplane attacks crew, 78 ; bomb- 
ing on Sundays, 94; pilot picked 
up, 104 

Afridi, 16, 84, 104, 117, 197 

A.L.2, American submarine, 267 

Albatross, 60 

Allen Lieut., 32 

Almirante Gowi,aItered to Broke,ll7 

Altham, Commander E., 51 

Amazon, 16, 21, 23, 37, 72, 100, 102 
112, 117, 197; King, Queen and 
Prince of Wales as passengers,200 

Ambuscade 117 

American, destroyers launched, 159 ; 
officers, excellence of, 150; ad- 
vice to, 151 

Americans, meeting with, 144 

American, training of crews, 146; 
entertainment of, 159 

Amp/iion, crew rescued, 19 

Amundsen, 22 

Anglia, hospital ship lost, 84 

Antarctic 247 

Antarctic explorer, 23 

Antwerp, 19 

Aranjo, Lieut. Carvetho, 298 



Argyllshire, 258 

Aries, sunk, 215 

Armistice, 254; news received, 271; 
German violation of 315 

Arrogant, 39, 41 

Arnaud de la Perriere, German 
submarine capt., 266 

Ashton (C.P.O.), J. C, 136 

Asquith Mr., as passenger, 202 

Attentive, 14, 30, 60, 64, 78; picks 
up Airmen, 104; 117 

Augusto de Casticho, 298 ; survi- 
vors, 302 

Auxiliary Patrol, 44 

Auxiliary Patrol Skippers, 46 

Aventurier, 105, 106 



Babcock, Lieut.-Comdr. 144 

"Baby Monitors" crews, 163 

Bacon, Rear-Admiral R. H. S-, 49, 
52, 54, 85; his despatch, 86, 
work, 89, 95, 99; on the Broke, 
117; 162; visits Belgium 171; 
180, 216, 218, 219; loss of his 
son, 222 

Bagnall (A.B.), J. W., 141 

Bailey (Sto.), F. R., 141 

Balfour, A. J., as passenger, 202, 
210 

Balgerhoeke, Germans last stand 
at 313 

Bannister (Ldg. Sto.) T. B., 141 

Barbara Camp, 164 

Barrage, Folkestone, 50; Grisnez, 
50; Goodwin Sands, 108 

Barrage Patrol, description of, 184 

Barrow, Commander B., 69 

Barter (Act. Art. Engr.), C. R. 137 

Bayly, Admiral Sir Lewis, 144; 
appreciation of, 148; stories of 
157 

Beatty, Admiral, 49 

Belgian Barrage Patrol, 96; re- 
established, 117 



319 



320 



INDEX 



Belgian Coast, 21, 49, 91; verses, 
58; barrage, 88; 192; heavy guns 
for, 161; defence of, 177; flotilla 
visited by King Albert, 199; 
patrol 94 

Belgian girl's inscription on photo- 
graph, 310 

Belgian Military Mission, 72 

Belgian railway reconstruction, 313 

Belgian Refugees, 213 ; at Dun- 
kirk, 28 

Belgium, re-development of, 312; 
recovery of, 317; Belgium, 1919, 
305 

Bellamy (Sto.), E., 141 

Benson Admiral, 211 

Berehaven, visited, 150, 245 

Bernard, Capt. V. H. C, 27 

Bickford, Commander W. G H., 
53, 61, 70; rescued, 71; popu- 
larity, 72; 162; joy-ride army, 
165 174 

Bird, Capt. F. G, 62 

Birmingham, 246, 254 

Blue Bird, 270 

Board of Inventions, 42 

Bombardment, at short notice, 181 

Bomb casualties, 95 

Borden, Sir R., 211 

Botha, 115 117, 188, 192, 197 

Bouclier, 190 

Bowring, Capt. H. W., 44, 191, 
218 

Boyland (Sto.), A., 137 

Braganca, 291 

Brazilian Coast Watching, 275 

Brazilian Coast Patrol, 273 

Brazilian Naval Squadron, 274 

Breslau 32 

Brian (Ldg. Sto.), D., 141 

Bridges, Col., 72 

Broke, m, 115; carries Marines, 
116; 117; 120; cordite explosion 
on, 124; 126; casualties, 130; 
cheered, 132; goes to London, 
134; honors for, 135; night 
patrol 138; navigator, 138; 
casualties, 141 ; cinema, 191 ; 
197; carries bullion, 200; 209 

Brooke, Lieut. J., 197 

Brooks (Sto.), S. F-, 136 



Brotherhood of the Seas, 131 

Brown (P.O.), C. C, 137 

Bruges Cathedral, 306; damage 
to, 310 

Bruges Docks used for submar- 
ines, 311 

Bruton, Capt. C. W., 199 

Bryant, Lieut., 257, 264 

Bryant (Sto. P. O.), J., 136 

Buckland, Lieut. A., 215 

Busman's Holiday, A, 143 

Bustard 24 

Buzzard, 23 

C34, Submarine, 103 

Cafe de l'Yser, 72 

Calais, bombarded, 120 

Calcium Light, used, 125 

Camm (Ldg. Sto.), H., 142 

Campbell, Capt. G, 245 

Campbell Commander Victor, 20, 

187 
Canadian Royal Engineers, 169 
Capitaine Me hi, 190 
Carder (Sto.), F., 141 
Carley Life Floats used, 152; 241 
Carson, Sir Edward, 143; 211 
Carter, Commander C., 51 
Chambers, Acting Comdr., R. H. B. 

187 
"Chapeau Rouge," 26 
Charleroi damage to factories, 314 
Chart, loss of, 220 
Chester, 245, 254 
Chitty (Sto.), T. E., 142 
Christmas, at war time, 36 
Churchill, Rt. Hon. Winston, 23, 

202, 204, 210 
Clark (A.B.), O.N., 136 
Clark (A.B.), S., 142 
Clarke (Sto), H., 142 
Clasper, Stoker John, heroism 61, 

130; bravery of his wife, 131; 

136, 142 
Cleeter (A.B.) W. G, 137 
Cleopatra, 105 
Clothes, importance of, 152 
C.M-B.'s (coastal motor-boats), 186 
Coastal motor-boats, 182 
Coast Patrol, Brazilian, 273 
Collard, Capt., 98 



INDEX 



321 



Commander-in-Chief's letters of 

thanks, 88 
Conqueror, 79 
Continental Times, 315 
Convoy System adopted 145 ; 

work of, 244; zig-zag course, 

250; 254 
Conyngham, 146 

Coomber, Commander T. G., 137 
Cork, Mayor of, story, 157 
Cossack, 16, 75, 104, 117, 197, 216 
Coughlan (Wt. Mech.), J., 137 
Craddock, Admiral, 275 
Crane, 17, 104, 117, 197 
Crown Prince the, 119 
Crusader, 16, 69, 81, 91, 93, 95, 99, 

104, 115, 117, 168, 197 199, 207 
Culverwell (Ch. E. R. A-), W., 136 
Cur ran, 53 



Dover Patrol, 21, 38; officer pris- 
oners, 70, 81; 85, 86, 90; streng- 
thened, 112; 119; letter writing, 
154; snap-shot firing, 156, bar- 
barge, 219 

Dover Straits, night raid on, in 

"Dover surf-deer," 97 

Downs Patrol, 197 

Dresden, 132 

Drifters 183 

Drifters' Crews, 45, 61 

Du Boulay, Sub-Lieut, 25 

Duff, Admiral, 248 

Dunkirk, as Naval base, 27; lines 
on, 35; destroyer division, 78; 
bombed, 91; guns transferred 
to, 162; 172; air raids, 195 

Dutch border fortifications, 309 



"D" Captain, 30, 32, 40, 60, 153 
Da Costa Ferreira Admiral, 298 
Daish (P.O.), C. H., 136 
Daniels (Ldg. Sto.), E., 137 
Dart (Ldg. Sto.), C. E., 141 
Davies (Sto. P. O.), T., 137 
Davis, 146 

"Days of Grace" permit, 18 
Deal, visit to hospital, 140 
Depth Charges use of, 151 
Despard, Lieut., M. C, 121, 123, 

129, 135, 209, 251 
Destroyers, "Thirty-knotters," 13 
"Tribals," 13; " M " Class 
93; French 106; fight, 131 
American, 159; an attack on 
192; fight with many, 193: 
despatches, 205 ; duties at Dover, 
206 
Diana, 187 

Diggle, Commander N., 51 
Doe (Sto.). G. H. 137 
Dominion Battery, 168 
Dominion Day, 170 
Dover destroyer birds, 186 
Dover destroyer force, 33 
Dover, German designs on, 14; 
change in, 90; attack on, 120; 
funeral, 133 
Dover Harbor, condition, 34; as 
destroyer base, 35 
21 



Edwards, Comdr. G, known as 
"Farver," 188; his decorations, 
190 

English Mines, dangerous, 183 

Enseigne Roux, 190 

Erebus, 179; casualties, 195 

Escort work, 74 

Eupion 47 

Evans, Capt. E. R. G. R., command 
of Mo/iaivk, 14; Austrian steamer 
caught, 18 ; transferred to Viking, 
31; on Dover naval officers, 70; 
exchanges command, 81; South 
Polar training; 114; transfer to 
Broke, 115; visit to Liverpool, 
115; visit to Scapa Flow, 115; 
visit to Lowestoft, 116; interro- 
gates prisoners, 128 ; promoted 
137; visit Queenstown, 144; 
visit to Dominion Battery, 170 
contact with French vessels, 190; 
carries Admiral Bacon and Vice- 
Admiral Ronarch, 191; becomes 
Flag Captain, 196; patrol work 
on Viking; appointed to com- 
mand of Active, presentation, 222 ; 
visit to Berehaven and Liver- 
pool, 245 ; invents tortoise board, 
255; brings home prisoners, 265; 
visit to Portugal, 273 

Excellent 23, 24 



322 



INDEX 



Falcon, 17, 25, 117, 197 

Falconer (Sto-), J- K., 137 

Falmouth, 212 

Fame, 286 

"Farver," see Comdr. Edwards, 
189 

Falknor, 115, 117 183, 197 

Fawn, 17, 117, 197 

Featherstone (A.B.), G., 142 

Field (Sto.), S., 141 

Firework Display, success of, 65 

Fishing for Tunney, 270 

Flag Changes, 49 

Flanders devastation, 25; base for 
submarines, 119; Poet's descrip- 
tion of, 307; Defence works, 307 

"Flat Iron" gunboats, 23 

Fletcher, Sons and Fearnall, 143 

Flint, Lieut., 169 

Flirt, 17, 111; bravery of crew, 
114; 117, 125 

Floating mines sunk by gunfire 83 

Flotilla leaders, 197 

Folkestone barrage, 50 

Forrester, Lieut.-Comdr. H., splen- 
did work of, 184 

Foster-Daimler drivers, 165 

Fowle (O.S.), H-, 136; 141 

Foxhall (Sto.), W., 141 

Francis Gamier, 106, 190 

Fraser, Commander J. S. G, 92 

Fred Karno's Navy, 88 

Froud (P.O.), G. H., 136 

Fryatt, Capt., his grave, 316 

Funchal, 269 

"G's," German destroyers, 107 

G42, sunk, 124; crews take to 
boats, 127 

G85 121 

G88', sunk bv C.M.B.'s, 182 

Geddes, Sir Eric, 211 

General Crauford, 51, 103, 104, 172 

General Wolfe, 51, 104 

George, Rt. Hon. Lloyd, as passen- 
ger, 200, 210 

German "A" boats, 105 

German anti-Aircraft batteries on 
Belgian coast, 179 

German Bodies picked up, 105 

German brutality, 118 



German destroyer tactics, 106 
German destroyers, 107 
German Gentleman, a, 178 
German, interned ships, 276 
German, light electric railway, 306 
German Marine Korps, 306 
German officer prisoner, 267 
German, pilfering of officers, 308 
German, realise game up, 118 
German submarines, 107 
German telephone systems, 308 
German underground villas, 307 
German vessel seized by Zulu, 17 
German victualling island, 286 
Germans found swimming in sea, 

125 
Germans' last stand at Balger- 

hoeke, 313 
Germany, hostilities commenced 

against, 13 
Ghent railway station, 313 
Ghiveldt, 165 
Ghurka, 16, 40, 41, 117; sunk, 196, 

197 
Gibbs, Commander G. L. D., 37, 93 
Gibraltar, arrival at, 251 ; exchange 

cargo at, 259; sports at, 263 
Gilfillan (Sto.), E., 136 
Gipsy, 17, 117, 197 
Gladstone, Capt., 116 
Glasgow, 132 
Glover (Sto-), A. E., 137 
Gneisenau, 132, 278 
Goble, Flight Sub-Lieut., 96 
Godsal, Commander, 316 
Goeben, 32 

Gold cargo, responsibility for, 201 
Good Hope, 132 
Goole X., 79 

Gradwell (S.B.), J. G, 137 
Graham, Lieut., 79 
Gransha, 53 

Grant, Rear-Admiral H. S., 251 
Greig, Staff Surgeon L., 81 
Grey, Sir Edward, as passenger, 202 
Greyhound, 17, 104, 117, 197 
Grinney (Gnr.), F-, 124, 136 
Grisnez barrage, 50 
Gyles, Midshipman G. A., 123, 142 

Haig, Sir Douglas, as passenger,207 



INDEX 



323 



Halahan Camp, 164 
Halahan, Comdr. H. C, 173 
Hallett, Lieut. J. I., verses by, 100; 

his signals, 176; wins D.S.O-, 

177; jester-in-chief, 187 
Hankey, Sir Maurice, 200 
Hanwell (Sto.), W., 142 
Harrison, Lieut., 186 
Harvey, Major, 169 
Harvey (Sto.), C. H., 137 
Harwich Force, 16 
Heaseman (Sto. P. O.), W- E., 136 
Helge, 248, 258 
Heligoland, l 'L" boats off, 19 
Helps (Sig.), S. C, 137 
Helsham (Surg. Prob.), C. T., 130, 

135 
Henderson, Capt. R., 251 
Henrique, negro host, 284 
Henton (A.B.), J., 137 
Hermes, Aircraft carrier sunk, 30 
Hickman, Lieut. G. V., 122, 135 
Hickman (Sto.), F. A., 137 
Higgins (Ldg. Sig.), C C, 137 
Hindenburg, 119 
Hitchin (A.B.), H. A., 137 
Hood, Admiral, 21, 22, 26, 46, 162 
Hosier (O.S.), H., 141 
Howard, Capt. W. V.. 44 
Hughes-Onslow, Captain, 27 
Hughes, Commander J-, 137 
Hughes, Mr. (Aust. Premier), 211 
Huke (Off. Std.), H., 142 
Humber, 22 

Ince, Flight Sub-Lieut., 79 
Ingleson (A.B.), E. R., 136 
Intrepide, 106 
Invincible, 49 

Ivens, G. G-, leading seaman, 124, 
141 

Jackson, Admiral Sir H., 204 
James (Yeo. Sig.), A. E., 136 
Jellicoe, Admiral, 143; visits Dover 

Patrol, 205 
Jess (O.S.), C. G., 142 
r 'Joao," 276 
Johnson, Capt. C D., 14, 31 

"K" Class gunboats, 254 
Kaiser, The, 118 



Kangaroo, 17, 117, 197 

Karlsruhe, 286 

Kelly, Comdr. W. H., 256 

Kelly's signal buoys, 257 

Kempenfelt, 192, 197 

King (Ldg. Sto.), F. W., 137 

King-Harman, Lieut. R. D., 125 

King of the Belgians visits coast 

flotilla, 199 
Kitchener, Lord, as passenger, 207 
Kite Balloon, use of, 63 
Knuts and Gold, 199 

"L" Class, 16, 19, 103, 197 

Lady Crundell, 76 

Laertes, 197 

Laforey, 197 

Lambe, Brig-Gen., 91 

Lance, 197 

Landon, Lieut.-Commander, 127, 

137 
Landrail, 197 
La Panne, 63 
Lapwing, 117 
Lark, 197 

Last (P. O.), A., 136 
Lauerberg,German submarine Capt., 

265; gallant adversary, 267 
Laurel, 197 
Laverock, 197 
Laivford, 197 

Lawson (Sto. P.O.), M., 137 
Leipzig, 132 
Leonidas, 103 
Leven, 17; coxswain's tale, 75; 104, 

117, 197 
Liberty, 197 
Linnet, 197 
Liverpool, 245 
Lleivellyn, 197 
Lewin Camp, 164 
Lewin, Lieut.-Commander, 34, 53, 

61, 162, 196 
Lobster that kicked, tale of, 223 
Lochinvar, 197 
Lockett (Sto.), W- H., 141 
"London Gazette," awards, 134 
Longbow, Lieut, von, 60 
Lord dive, 51, 56, 61, 98, 103, 105 
Lucifer, 197 
Ludendorf, 119 



324 



INDEX 



Lusitania crime, 125 
Lusitania (merchant ship), 84 
Lydiard, 197 
Lynes, Commodore, 196 
Lysander, 103 

"M" class, 197 

A/24, Monitor, 117 

M2S, monitor, 104, 117 

A/26, monitor, 117 

M27, monitor, 104, 117 

Mabey (A.B.), J. T., 142 

McDougall, 146 

McGuire, Lieut, 24 

McKenna, Mr., as passenger, 207 

Maddick, Capt. D., 191 

Magher, Major, story of, 167 

Magon, 190, 192 

Maguire (Ldg. Sto-), T., 142 

Main (A. B.), F., 142 

Mair (A.B.), W. F., 136 

Maloja, P. and O. Steamer, 84 

Manisty, Paymaster Capt. H.W.E., 

251 
Manly, 198 
Mansfield, 198 
Maori, 16, 40, 41 ; sunk, 69 
Marksman, 197 
Marshal Ney, 62, 64 
Marshal Soult, 95, 98 
Mascots, 82 
Mastiff, 103, 198 
Matchless, 198 
Maud (Mid.), M. T., 137 
Max, Burgomaster, 215 
Mavo, Admiral, 207; presented 

with flag, 209 
Melpomene, 197 
Mentor, 127; picks up prisoners, 

128; 189, 193, 197 
Mercantile Marine, 244 
Merchant seamen, 256 
Merchant Service, officers, 17 
Merchant Ships, 50 
Merchant tonnage, 46 
Mermaid, 17, 117, 197 
Mersey, 22 

Meteor, 103; mine-layer, 184; 197 
Michell, Mr., British Consul at Rio, 

296 
Middelkerke, 25 



Middelkerke Bank, 66 

Milford Sound, 266 

Miller, Commander S. R., 51 

Miller (Sto.), C. E., 137 

Milner, Lord, 211 

Milne, 103, 198 

Minefield, Folkestone to Griznez, 
218 

Mine barrage re-established, 191 

Mine-laving, 81, 91, 185; verses on, 
174 

Mine-laying by submarines,183,192 

Mines, 33 

Mines, German, 107 

Minneberg, 277 

Minos, 103, 198 

Mine-sweeper saves pilot, 79 

Mine-sweeping, 85; excellent work 
of, 195; at Dover, 212; gener- 
osity of crews, 214; supplied with 
warm clothes, 217 

Miranda, 198 

Mitchell (Ldg. Sto-), A. J., 142 

Modified sweep, 38, 41 

Mohawk, 14, 16, 26, 27, 29, 117, 
197, 220 

Monitors, 22, 51, 52; success of, 
65; slow speed, 98, 103; M25, 
104; disguised, 171 

Monmouth, 132 

Moorsom, 193, 198 

More, Paymaster-Lieut., J. Mc. L., 
196 

Morning, Arctic Relief Ship, 247 

Morris, 197 

Muff, (Sto.3,) E., 137 

Murray, 103, 198 

Miirsell (P.O.), F. P., 136 

Myngs, 103, 198 

Myrmidon, 17, 117; loss of 196 



Nelson (Ch. E. R. A.), R. V., 137 

Newhaven, 33 

Nicholson, Sub-Lieut., 137 

Nieuport, 26, 72 

Nieuport Bains, 163 

Nieuport Pier, signals from, 23 

Norford (Sto.), R., 141 

North Star, 194, 198 

Norton (A.B.), C. R., 136 



INDEX 



325 



Nubian, 16, 104; salved, 112; 117, 

197 
"Nubian Nonsense," 35, 58, 85, 

109, 161 
Nugent, 178, 198 
Numb erg, 132 



Observation Posts, 72 

Obusier, 190 

Officers, miscellaneous, 90; com- 
parison of, 113 

Oilers, 47 

"Oily Wads," 66 

Oliphant, Commander Harry, 21 
37, 100, 112, 183 

Oliver, Admiral, 203 

Oost Dunkirk Bains, 163 

Orchard (Sto. P. O.), H. G., 141 

Ostend, 19, 25, 59, 93, 102, 182; 
bombardment of, 207; damage 
to, 308 

Othello, 216 

"Our Mr. Smith," 129, 139; as 
flagmasker, 209 

Overseas Canadian Railway Con- 
struction Corps, 168 

Pll, patrol boat, 117, 198 

P12, patrol boat, 117 

P17, patrol boat, 117, 198 

P19, patrol boat, 117 

P21, patrol boat, 117, 198 

P24, patrol boat, 117, 198 

P34, patrol boat, 117 

P49, patrol boat, 198 

P50, patrol boat, 198 

Page (Ldg. Sig.), W., 137 

Paragon, 117; sunk, 119 

Parsons, Eng. Commander, 34 

Patagonia, 278, 286 

Paton, Capt., 95, 99 

Patrol Boats, list of, 117; rapid 
building, 145 

Patrol flotilla, 13 

Patrol gunboats, 248 

Patrolling, laws of, 85; new scheme, 
88; verses on, 109 

Peck, Commander A. M., 134, 137; 
leaves the Swift, 187 

Pedro de Frontin, Rear-Admiral, 
274 



Peppe, Sub-Lieut. L. H., 126, 137, 
194 

Percival, Lieut-Commander, 84 

Persia, 277 

Phoenix, 117 

Phoebe, 198 

Pichess (Sig.), S., 142 

Pistols, use of, 129 

Ponta Delgada, 298 

Ponta Os Arnel, 303 

Porcupine, 223 

Porpoise, 117 

Porter, 146 

Portuguese, captured by submarine, 
301 

Portuguese Officer, appreciation of, 
303 

Portuguese Sea Patrol, 298 

Pott (C.Q.S.), J., 142 

Prince Charles, 199 

Prince Eugene, 51, 93, 98, 105 

Prince Leopold, 199 

Prince Rupert, 51, 56, 98 

Princess Jose, 199 

Princess Mary's Christmas Fund, 37 

Prize, captured by Zulu, 

Pullen, Lieut. C. H., 273 ; apprecia- 
tion of, 274; watching Brazilian 
coast, 275; at Pernambuco, 276; 
watching ships, 277 ; at Macau, 
277, at Caicara, 277; valuable 
result, 278 ; at Formosa with 
traveling priest, 279 ; as a doc- 
tor, 284; life on an island, 290; 
at Braganca, 291; patriotism, 
295; transformed, 296 

''Q" ships, 144 

Queen Elizabeth (of Belgium) 

visits coast floatilla, 199; 210 
Queen, transport, 111 
Queenstown, visited, 144; as naval 

base, 157 

Racehorse, 17, 32, 117, 197 
Rafferty (Sto.), J. J., 141 
Ramscapelle, 72 

Range, method of increasing, 101 
Rawles (A.B.), W. C, 142 
Rawson, Lieut.-Commander H., 38 



326 



INDEX 



Read (Sto.), A., 142 

Redoubtable, 27, 60 

Reinold, Commander H. O., 51 99 

Revenge, 27 

Rigg, Lieut.-Commander W. G-, 212 

Riley (E.R.A.), H. A., 137 

Rio, British Legation, 296 

Rio Negro, 286 

R.N.A.S., 27, 79; verses on, 175; 

pilot saved, 178 
R.N.V.R., Signalman story, 138 
Robertson, Gen. Sir W., 95, 200 
Robinson (A.B.), L., 142 
Ronarch, Vice-Admiral, 191 
Royal Marines take over guns, 164 
Royal Naval Division, 19 
Ruytenfjeld, 248 

'' S's " German destroyers, 107 
Sailors, generosity of, 29 
Salamanca, 277 
Salvage work, 74 
Sampson, Commander, 27 
Samways (A.B.), C. T., 141 
Sandettie Light Vessel christened 

''Mournful Mary," 195 
Sao Joao Islands, 279 
Saracen, 16, 117, 197 
Saurin, Commander, 24 
Schroeder, Admiral von, 309 
Schroeder, Fraulein von, most hated 

woman in Flanders, 309 
Sc/iarnhorst, 132, 278 
Sea Patrol, Portuguese, 298 
Sedgley (P.O. Tel-), H., 136, 142 
Severn, 22 
Seymour, 115 

Shearn (Ch. Sto.), W., 136 
Shoppey, Lieut. D. G. G., 72 
Shouler, Lieut. E. J. B., 76 
Signal boys, 257 
Simmonds (P.O.), S. A., 136 
Simmons (Ch. Sto.), H., 136 
Simpson, Lieut. H. A., 135 
Sims, Admiral, 144 
Sir John Moore, 51, 55 
Sixth Flotilla, 14, 17, 19, 25, 30; 

composition of, 197 
Sleight (Sto. P.O.), F., 142 
Smith, Petty Officer, 116 
Smith (Yeo. Sig.), W., 136 



Smoke screen, 62, 101, 103, 104, 179 

Smuts, General, 211 

Southgarth, stranded, 78 ; salvaged, 
80 

Spies captured, 213 

" Stand-off " svstem, 34 

Station Hotel, 72 

Stoles (O.S.), E.E., 142 

Storfjeld, 248 

Stowe, 82 

Strevens (P.O.), W. E., 136 

Submarine campaign begun, 30; 
hunts, 33; devices, 38, 42; cap- 
tured, 41 ; yearly meetings of, 
43; shelters, 311 

Sundav bomb dropping, 94 

Sussex, 84 

Sven Hedin, Dr., 21 

Swift, 103, 117, 120, 125, 126; 
damaged, 128; honours, 135; 
187, 197 

Syren, 17, 26, 80, 117, 197 



Tartar, 16, 61, 104, 117, 197 

" Taubes," 60 

Taussig, Commander, 147 

Taylor (Sto.), E., 142 

Taylor (O.S.), S- J. T., 137 

T.BA, 117 

r.fi.15, 117, 197 

T.B.24, 117, 197 

T.B.D.'s, 36 

Telephone Systems, German, 308 

Templar's Tower, 72 

Termagent, 193 

Terra Nova, 20, 78 

Terrible, 172 

Terror, 179, 193, 199, 207 

Third Battle Cruiser Squadron, 49 

''Thirty-Knotters," 13, 118, 197 

Thompson (Sto-), G. W., 141 

Thorpe (Sto.), W., 141 

Tipping, Lieut. C. G., killed, 216 

" Tirpitz " battery, 164; straffed, 

171 
Tobey, Lieut.-Commander, 144 
Torpedo attack, 106 ; new form of, 

194 
Torpedo Boat No. 24 wrecked, 196 







R D - 7 9. * 



INDEX 



327 



Tortoise Board, invented by Author, 
255, 

Toward blown up, 215 

Towers (O.S.), R.V., 141 

Tractors, names of, 166 

Transport captains, 74 

Trawler Patrol, 44 

Tribals, 13, list of, 16, 54, 101, 118, 
197, 203 

Trident, 198 

Trinity House steamers, 92 

Tripods, 55 

Troublesome Target, the, 161 

Tubantia, 18 

Tubb (A.B.), G., 141 

Turner (Gnr.), H., 136 

Turner (Sto.), W. C, 142 

Tyrwhitt, Commodore, 19, 92 

t/8 captured, 41 

tZ-boats, 15, 30; plans for destruc- 
tion of, 219; 267 

" Uncle Lewis," 147 

Unity, 117 

Ure, 41, 84, 117 

VA, Submarine, 103 

" V's," German destroyers, 107 

Valparaiso fight, 132 

Vandyke, 286 

Venerable, 21 

Venizelos, 210 

Venn, Commander G. W. C, 62 

Verhaeren, Poet describes Flan- 
ders, 307 

Victor, 117 

Viking, 16, 31, 36, 39, 52, 61; 
camouflaged, 64; assists Leven, 



75; 79; saves Southgarth, 80, 
117, 197, 199; distinguished pas- 
sengers, 202; 217 
Vindictive, tribute to crew of, 316 

IVadsivorth, 145 

Wainivright, 146 

Walls (Ldg. Sto.), C. E-, 137 

Wauton, Hubert, killed, 25 

Webb (Sto.), A., 141 

Wellman (E.R.A.), W. B., 137 

West Deep, 63 

Westende, 25 

Westwater (Surg. Prob-), J. S., 136 

Whistle Buovs, 67 

Whitehead, Capt. F. A., 251, 254 

Wigram, Capt. E., 51, 93 

Williams, Commander, 26, 81 

Williams (Sto.), C, 79, 136 

Williamson (Chief Petty Officer), 

78, 82 
Withers, Capt. P., 218 
Woolcombe-Boyce, Lieut.-Com- 

mander, 196 
Worcester Lovs, 247 
Wright (Sto-), J- W., 142 

Yapp (Ldg. Sto.), F. T., 137 
Yates (A.B.), V., 142 
Younghusband, Sub-Lieut. F., 40 
Young, Mr. Bertie, gifts by, 37 

Zeebrugge, 19, 53, 93, 102, 182 
Zeebrugge-Bruges Canal, 312 
Zubian, 197 
Zulu, 16, 103, 117, 196, 197 



A. 










*2- 












I': V * 






•,>, 



v 












/ 

,'«. ^ & /■ 






l\ 



Oeacidified using the Bookkeeper process 
> Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 

Treatment Date: MAy ^ 

\ PreservationTechnologie 

f •• «■ A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATIOI 

**■ * •» /ir 111 Thomson Parti Drive 



■>- 



Cranberry Township, PA 16066 
(724) 779-2111 



V s? 







c 




*°o 








^ v * s • * 

DOBBS BROS. 

LIBRARY BINDING 






JAN 7a», 

ST. AUGUSTINE 
^§s^^2084 




